tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80275523912328871222018-03-06T21:23:41.504+02:00Globosocial AdventuresJourneys into the social unknown | Rizwan TayabaliRizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125socialadventureshttps://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-54859704781638235412011-11-18T11:52:00.001+02:002011-11-19T12:38:05.898+02:00Projects in Thailand Part 2 – Fighting Negligence and Poverty<p>After a hiatus of a few countries, Thailand once again had an <a href="http://www.ashoka.org" target="_blank">Ashoka</a> presence. With about 80 Fellows elected since 1989, they had enough active ones facing ongoing challenges to keep me occupied. I was connected with a few of their Fellows who needed help moving their organisations forward. One of these was addressing medical negligence and the other two were involved with addressing poverty amongst rice farmers. </p> <p>I also had the opportunity to attend a couple of farming and community conferences in the North, run a student workshop at a private university, and engage with a project rescuing and rehabilitating street Elephants. </p> <p>I started in Bangkok with the Thai Medical Error Network. </p> <h4>Fighting Medical Negligence </h4> <p>The <a href="http://thai-medical-error.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Thai Medical Error Network (TMEN)</a> is an informal network of volunteer patients, families, doctors and lawyers across Thailand fighting for the rights of those who have been victims of medical negligence. </p> <p>Thailand has a very high rate of medical negligence. Between 25,000 and 50,000 patients a year fall victim to serious negligence. Serious repercussions extend from disfigurement to mental and physical disability and death. The long-term impact isn’t just limited to the individual, but to their families too, significantly increasing the scale of people living with the consequences. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-ovBovrkGLvg/TsYqhfIoO_I/AAAAAAAADwc/RnU7_mAFjhI/s1600-h/Unsolvedv13.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Some of the many unsolved incidences of negligence in Thailand. [Picture Courtesy TMEN]" border="0" alt="Some of the many unsolved incidences of negligence in Thailand. [Picture Courtesy TMEN]" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-SXTdLHIaQ4Y/TsYqitO8DcI/AAAAAAAADwk/Z3BaWGy__rY/Unsolvedv1_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="373" /></a></p> <p>The majority of victims fall into the low-income and low literate demographic, whose status means they cannot command the same quality of attention as the rich. </p> <p>The reasons for the high incidence of negligence appear to split into <strong>four</strong> primary categories </p> <ol> <li><strong><em>Cultural</em></strong> – A bias towards treating Doctors like kings, and a reluctance to challenge treatment decisions based on fear of negative repercussions and further drop in quality of care.&#160;&#160; <br /></li> <li><strong><em>Personal</em></strong> – Lack of knowledge and awareness of rights, especially among the low income and low literate demographic. Also lack of collective voice and empowerment.&#160; <br /></li> <li><strong><em>Regulatory</em></strong> – No legislation or policy supporting the rights of patients or their freedom of access to information about their treatment. <br /></li> <li><strong><em>Systemic</em></strong> – The Medical system protects its own, with strong unions and backup legal support for doctors. Combined with a complete lack of state support systems for patients, the result is that the individual on the receiving end has nowhere to turn. </li> </ol> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-yuSDJ27ELKg/TsYqkI9zUiI/AAAAAAAADws/efWbuaDkfUg/s1600-h/P10907099.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Characteristics of Medical Negligence in Thailand-" border="0" alt="Characteristics of Medical Negligence in Thailand-" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-p6foOhFnYjU/TsYqmOrzhrI/AAAAAAAADw0/0m_1_SRCQvs/P1090709_thumb8.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a>&#160;</p> <p>The overall result is a severe power imbalance in favour of Doctors, and TMEN has been working to change that. When I met them, they were already on the brink of policy change after many years of collective lobbying. The new policy would introduce the safeguarding of patient rights, and enforce medical accountability as well as a state reparation fund for the victims of negligence. </p> <p>However, getting policy changed is not the same as seeing a difference on the ground. All over the world, there are laws stating rights, but no actual enforcement. This means that the job of a social entity driving change does not end at policy change. Someone has to support and drive the implementation of said change into actual practice. </p> <p><strong>From Network To Non-Profit </strong></p> <p>For TMEN to do this on any scale meant needing to raise funds to formalise services, manage the network, disseminate knowledge about rights, create a hub for collection of patient stories and so on. To qualify for funds, needed non-profit status; and to qualify for that required the creation of a formal entity. </p> <p>Therefore the challenge lay in how to transition a successful non-hierarchical network of volunteers into an organisation with <em>some</em> paid members, without creating the usual pyramid structure or compromising the nature of the open selfless network. </p> <p>So that’s where I came in. I first met with the main group who managed the network, and together we worked through the whole concept of how to address the challenge, both practically and in terms of organisational design. </p> <p>They were also keen to understand how to use the web and social media to build audiences and global support, so we had a workshop to demystify and understand how to go about it. What’s super impressive is that today they have a great site up and running using blogger - <a href="http://thai-medical-error.blogspot.com/">http://thai-medical-error.blogspot.com/</a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-NGojS3vtDos/TsYqnjwUXFI/AAAAAAAADw8/_csGYxo4gdU/s1600-h/P1090568_thumb21.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Workshop in Bangkok with the TMEN Team" border="0" alt="Workshop in Bangkok with the TMEN Team" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-fAPADUy9yOo/TsYqpSK-Q1I/AAAAAAAADxE/eoSdNgBpy7s/P1090568_thumb2_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="376" /></a></p> <p>Then later I worked more closely with the Founder, Preeyanan Lorsermvatta; a fabulous example of selfless drive, perseverance and never-give-up. Preeyanan has been fighting for justice for her son for 19 years. That fight continues, but along the way she has helped thousands others find not just their voice, but reparative justice. </p> <p>To get to a sensible solution to the problem at hand, we aimed to go through a 5 step process, but really only got as far as step 3 because Preeyanan had other more immediate priorities with driving the impending legislative change. </p> <ol> <li>Review Problem Definition, Vision, Mission and Strategies </li> <li>Lay out a development plan </li> <li>Design org structure and operating principles </li> <li>Identify resourcing infrastructure and capital needed </li> <li>Define transition plan and next steps </li> </ol> <p>Here’s some take-aways for those of you who are dealing with the same problem elsewhere…</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-lwf3jNYAKqI/TsYqqnRbmlI/AAAAAAAADxM/MQxw7o9DqHc/s1600-h/10.FullSnapshotMissiontoStrategytoOr%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Strategy and Design for Addressing Medical Negligence" border="0" alt="Strategy and Design for Addressing Medical Negligence" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-VSBhS0PvCUg/TsYqr61i_5I/AAAAAAAADxU/mUVO8nraLqU/10.FullSnapshotMissiontoStrategytoOr%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a>&#160;</p> <p><strong>Critical Factors Driving Medical Negligence </strong></p> <p>Regardless of which country you’re in, addressing the issue of doctor negligence requires addressing the following <em>8 </em><em>factors: </em></p> <p><em>Systemic &amp; Institutional Change </em></p> <ol> <li>Problem Recognition at a Social and Systemic Level </li> <li>Regulatory Policy </li> <li>Medical Practices </li> <li>Accountability </li> <li>Reparation </li> </ol> <p><em>Patient Empowerment </em></p> <ol> <li>Collective Voice and Awareness of Process, Rights and Common Issues </li> <li>Informal Patient for Patient Support Systems </li> <li>Formal Support Systems (Help-lines, Legal Support, Health Insurance…) </li> </ol> <p><em>(See the above sketch for a breakdown of how to tackle these) </em></p> <p>Trying to create one massive organisation, with branches everywhere never really works. Bureaucracy is a killer. A much better model is a hub and spoke network <em>(also sketched out in the graphic above)</em>.</p> <p><strong>Designing Different</strong></p> <p>Finally to the most important challenge. Organisational structure. I’ll cover this again a number of times in future posts. It is one of the biggest challenges facing social entities, because having a workable solution is only one part of the equation. Building and designing an organisation that is able to deliver it effectively is the other. </p> <p>The norm is to copy the commercial pyramidal hierarchy. Here the maximum control and financial value accrues to the ones at the top, ostensibly creating an aspirational ladder of compliance and motivation. From my experience of consulting to some of the world’s biggest companies, I can assure that mostly it just creates bottle-necks and inefficiency. </p> <p>There are better ways to approach it when the primary motivating driver for participants is not money. </p> <p>In this case, to prevent losing the networked culture of operating, we had to avoid a structure that created one primary owner / decision maker, and stayed true to the open network culture. </p> <p>The alternative was to look at a group decision making structure, based on Agile operating principles. This non-hierarchical group would be comprised of representatives from each strategic vertical. Since the majority of those involved in the network were victims of negligence, the issue of patient representation was inherently addressed.</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-5KcUh31FQIY/TsYqtkkkx9I/AAAAAAAADxc/DY8XTRaiARQ/s1600-h/TMENOrgStructureL12.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="TMEN Org Structure" border="0" alt="TMEN Org Structure" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ZSulY1ijmJ0/TsYqvTcLm1I/AAAAAAAADxk/YO5lVq5b66U/TMENOrgStructureL_thumb6.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="296" /></a></p> <p>The redesign was loosely based on a model of organisation design that is better suited to ensuring that those at the coalface of helping people make the decisions. The backend functions here provide support and help make things happen, rather then other way round.</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-jRmfYQfGxSA/TseEKPnp8xI/AAAAAAAADyc/iaJlGOxM15E/s1600-h/Org%252520Design%252520Model%25255B7%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Org Design Model" border="0" alt="Org Design Model" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-UGTMqf-dHAo/TseELR6-6BI/AAAAAAAADyk/3Ru4Vewxg-E/Org%252520Design%252520Model_thumb%25255B5%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="316" /></a> </p> <p>I’ll cover more on the underlying model behind this in later posts. </p> <h4>Eradicating Farmer Poverty</h4> <p><a href="http://rcp.in.th/" target="_blank">Rural Capital Partners</a> is a 20 year old organisation investing in and financing community programmes in Thailand. They’d been working with Organic Rice Farming on a significant scale (6000 tons a year) and were up for an Ashoka Fellowship, so they wanted some help with preparing for their application. </p> <p>I often get requests to help put proposals together, and I usually ignore the actual proposal writing itself and help the organisation work on the robustness of their solution and operation instead. Anyone can write fancy words and spin out a semantic reality. It’s more powerful when the actuality speaks for itself. </p> <p>We looked at their mission, strategies and design principles, which led us to review the problem at hand, and consider whether their existing approach would solve it. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-qPjGhikdqeU/TsYqwdRIjzI/AAAAAAAADxs/xUTfWr96mpU/s1600-h/P1090699%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Workshop with Pansa Tajaroensuk, Managing Director, Rural Capital Partners." border="0" alt="Workshop with Pansa Tajaroensuk, Managing Director, Rural Capital Partners." src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-JvxSqHzDO9s/TsYqxnsJbGI/AAAAAAAADx0/OaZPpB7-98Y/P1090699_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-OnCZlFYp1Ac/TsYqz1k9NaI/AAAAAAAADx8/YAWG3NIMgNs/s1600-h/P1090707%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Farmer Poverty Problem Definition" border="0" alt="Farmer Poverty Problem Definition" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-C9crYE_2UCk/TsYq2CxOpsI/AAAAAAAADyE/Fx2uvq6AyQg/P1090707_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p>The typical approach to helping impoverished farmers is to train them to improve their yield, while also training them on better savings practices. </p> <ol> <li>There are about 35 million farmers in Thailand, 40% of 15 million of which are below the poverty line. 3 million of these are rice farmers; which straight away indicates the scale of the problem facing any entity trying to eradicate poverty in this sector.&#160; <br /></li> <li>The second problem is this. The average rice farmer in poverty in Thailand earns about 25,000 baht (about $800) per year, but is typically in debt to the tune of anywhere between 100,000 and 500,000 baht. These loans are typically from <em>loan sharks</em> with crazy interest rates that make them virtually unresolvable for the farmer. Therefore solutions that focus on simply increasing income by a few percentage every year via improving yield, may ameliorate immediate pressures but are never going to solve the long-term poverty cycle. <br /></li> <li>The third problem is that cash is not wealth, and simply increasing cash flow to an individual or family does not in any way transform them out of poverty. Wealth is defined by the ownership of assets that hold value; ideally increasing value. So in order to ensure a lasting transition out of poverty, social entities have to consider strategies that create wealth for the people and communities they work with. </li> </ol> <p>Any solution aiming to eradicate farmer poverty in Thailand, would thus have to extend beyond increasing income and improving savings practices, to debt management and eventually wealth creation systems. </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-BWWn1og0h-o/TsYq3u5ZdkI/AAAAAAAADyM/D-yJejbwr3I/s1600-h/Long-Term-Development-Model%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Long-Term-Development-Model" border="0" alt="Long-Term-Development-Model" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-sUHePyTSutY/TsYq4-2y5sI/AAAAAAAADyU/1V_t0w3ORvE/Long-Term-Development-Model_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="271" /></a>&#160;</p> <p><strong>Dealing with Debt</strong></p> <p>One way to address this kind of debt is to buy it over for the farmer, and then reduce the interest rate down to a manageable level. Ideally just at the point needed to cover the operational costs of providing the service. Think mortgage type repayment terms, except geared towards the benefit of the farmer rather than profit. </p> <p>The next step would be to formalise savings practices and an investment or banking vehicle to return value on those savings; part of which go towards debt reduction and part of which go towards assets owned by the farmer. </p> <p>If looked at on a 10 to 20 year timeframe, these kinds of debt and wealth management systems could be super scalable, as proven by micro-finance. This approach could also provide an infrastructure that could be used by other farming and rural development entities; thus establishing a potential to tackle the problem on its actual scale. </p> <p>Since both these projects were conducted using a translator, it’s been difficult to keep up with progress. This means I’m not sure how much of it was practically implemented in the end, but the concept remains worth considering.</p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/PO7ebHXruQQ" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/11/after-hiatus-of-few-countries-thailand.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-10217997819698051382011-11-14T13:31:00.001+02:002011-11-15T02:45:04.371+02:00Projects in Thailand Part 1 – Start-ups, Investment, Electricity, Micro-Enterprise and Anti-Prostitution<p>The main reason for visiting Thailand, as ever, was to get beneath its tourist veneer and engage with its social and human challenges. Over the month I was there, I worked with projects involved in Medicare, Farming, Social Investment, Community Development, and randomly even Elephant Rescue. </p> <p>Starting out in Bangkok at my friend Dev’s took me back to some of the work he had been involved with as part of YSEI (Youth Social Enterprise Initiative). Dev co-wrote a guide for young social entrepreneurs called Start-up and Change the World, which I thoroughly recommend reading.</p> <h4>Start-up and Change the World</h4> <div style="width: 500px" id="__ss_155623"><iframe height="418" marginheight="0" src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/155623" frameborder="0" width="500" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></div> <p>&#160;</p> <p>Dev had been working with a Swiss Bank branching out into social investment, and it gave me a chance to explore the illusion that is ‘social’ investment with an insider. Sadly what I learnt did nothing to dispel my concerns around social investment, and the fact that Dev had quit out of disillusionment about sums it up. </p> <h4>Social Investing</h4> <p>Social Investment is the big hype of the moment. The apparent answer to all our scaling prayers. It is however only an option for social businesses, and not a viable funding strategy for general development work (see my Social Effect post on <a href="http://www.socialeffect.org/2011/10/financing-challenges-and-solutions-for.html" target="_blank">Financing Social Enterprises</a>).</p> <p>The investor is not looking first to fund programs that will transform lives and then generate returns, but to fund ones that first and foremost will provide the return on investment they or their clients need.</p> <p>They are usually looking to fund new technologies, utilities, energy, products, enterprises and saleable services. The typical IRR is still 30% and for many investors this is just another opportunity to make money, gain competitive advantage in an increasingly socially aware market, and look good at the same time. </p> <p>Aside from the few that are really trying to do something positive, I’ve already been pulled into extricating a series of social organisations from investors doing everything from under-the-radar land grabs, to fraud and brute exploitation in the sharing of profits. As a field it’s all still too new and exciting for much of the negative aspects to surface, but be sure that it will in the next few years.</p> <h4>Example: Rural Electricity from Rice Husks &amp; Social Investment</h4> <p>Coincidentally, while in Bangkok I was asked to mediate between a ‘Social Investor’ and one of the farming non-profits I was working with. I’ll skip specifics in the name of professionalism. The investor was connected to one of their funders, and they felt that it might be beneficial all round if the relationship could be made to work. The two parties had been discussing things for about a year, but hadn’t come to any agreement.</p> <p>The community organisation had been looking into small scale energy production from rice husks to ensure zero waste operation, and additional income to farmers. The investor however was interested in financing bigger 1-3megawatt size rural electricity infrastructures and the community organisation was being encouraged to sign up on the promise of exciting new financial opportunities. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-8Yt_uuD4T4A/TsD7xOh8zwI/AAAAAAAADvM/rY4-zzvMOtU/s1600-h/Husk%252520Power%252520System%252520India%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Example: Husk Power System, India" border="0" alt="Example: Husk Power System, India" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-S8FpEpLbPKE/TsD7yE4LZ4I/AAAAAAAADvU/KcGOE3RwW84/Husk%252520Power%252520System%252520India_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="343" /></a> </p> <p>The trouble is that no-one had asked the critical questions to understand the investor’s real motivation. After a little probing I realised they simply needed a local community partner entity to minimise their risks </p> <ol> <li>To smooth out getting all the planning, build and running permissions at a local level, which is otherwise a major risk in getting up and running. </li> <li>To ensure a steady and fixed price supply of rice husks for energy production. Previous experience had shown that farmers would agree on a price before start-up and then increase it once the infrastructure was up and running. These had major risk implications for profits and continued operation. </li> </ol> <p>Further pushing revealed 3 major issues in the potential partnership</p> <ol> <li>The non-profit was not being made aware that they were essentially just required to minimise profit risk, rather than being seen as an equal partner in a human development endeavour. </li> <li>The investor had no actual intention of sharing any of their pro-formas or financial templates; so profits, costs and timelines were completely hidden from the non-profit. </li> <li>It also transpired that the investor wasn’t looking to commit to any set share of profits or co-ownership, but was only offering additional income for farmers through payment for rice husks, which might otherwise just go to waste. When pushed there was a lot of mention of potential ‘millions’ in the future, some of which might go to the community, but of course only after ‘breaking even’ in 7 or 10 years. It was all too cagey to be worth trusting. </li> </ol> <p>The long and short of it was that the community organisation and its key resources would end up spending unknown hours of their time over months or years smoothing out administration and logistics and running of the plant, for the promise of an unknown, if any, financial return; while the investor stood to make huge amounts of money over a 5 to 20 year timeframe. </p> <p>It was a no-brainer to advise the community entity against taking up the offer or wasting any more time on the matter.</p> <p>Having gone through this process a few more times since then, when it comes to social investment, my usual advice is that if the organisation isn’t simply an alternative business, and doesn’t have legal, contractual and financial expertise equivalent to that of the investing entity, the power imbalance is too steep. However good it looks on the surface, the investor holds all the cards. Best avoid.</p> <h4>Microfinance and ‘Entrepreneurs’</h4> <p>While in Bangkok I was connected with a project called Step Ahead providing microfinance to women ‘entrepreneurs’. The CEO was out of town, so I didn’t really engage with them beyond the surface. </p> <p>However it got me thinking. This concept of calling any recipient of micro-credit an entrepreneur is an interesting development in the social sector. ‘Entrepreneur’ is just a fancy word with implications beyond the reality. Street sellers are no longer just people trying to make a little money to get by as vendors or hawkers or stall owners, but are portrayed as vibrant exciting new Richard Bransons in the making. </p> <p>It makes the financing entity look good, but the shame is that it obscures the human, the endeavour, and the struggle that continues regardless of the small amounts of over-priced credit being provided. </p> <p>Below are some of the bright cheerful Thai women who have been taking out microfinance loans for years, but are still grinding it out. We should be able to do better for them.</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-oiaWELumyy0/TsD7zg_cX4I/AAAAAAAADvc/QyXIaXsW3q0/s1600-h/P10905743.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Thai street vendors" border="0" alt="Thai street vendors" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-UZKKL57yvnI/TsD71UAUaFI/AAAAAAAADvk/HgjC9RPBybg/P1090574_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-AY_MY5IzVSM/TsD721qdEjI/AAAAAAAADvs/CVRzygD0HIA/s1600-h/P10905753.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Thai street vendors" border="0" alt="Thai street vendors" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ZD9uXzIOnVs/TsD74YqxWeI/AAAAAAAADv0/Tpt9BAMln-s/P1090575_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-l6a6mjVrxls/TsD75p9CKlI/AAAAAAAADv8/V4ylQAPD_tU/s1600-h/P10905762.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Thai street vendors" border="0" alt="Thai street vendors" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-AlxW4XP0rAI/TsD77JwTveI/AAAAAAAADwE/zt8WsStswa8/P1090576_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-w18tbudE79k/TsD78ZiiGlI/AAAAAAAADwM/fUEkvWbKSXo/s1600-h/P10905822.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Thai street vendors" border="0" alt="Thai street vendors" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-zsgbV6vU--E/TsD79-yq9nI/AAAAAAAADwU/_uADfFSOp7g/P1090582_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> </p> <h4>Tackling Prostitution and The Importance of Listening</h4> <p>Through Step Ahead I met some American girls who were voluntarily working with male prostitutes in the city. </p> <p>When looked at brutally, selling your body for sex is much the same as selling your body for any other kind of unpleasant physical labour. The key difference is the physical and mental risk to the individual, that makes it worth tackling and eradicating. </p> <p>Physically the risk extends from STDs and the potential death sentence of AIDS, to extreme violence, all the way through to human trafficking and slavery. Mentally the risks lie in the social exclusion, damage to self-esteem confidence and hopefulness, and the emotional challenges that come with trauma, especially in the cases of forced prostitution. </p> <p>Thai people are generally pretty tolerant of the sex industry and there aren’t the same stigmas attached to it as in the West. This extends even to male prostitution which is fairly common with the amount of sex tourism that goes on. In Thailand then, prostitution is often a choice, and on an individual level rather than consortia or agent controlled. This means that the individual does have the option to make a different choice, but financial circumstances counter the perceived personal risk. </p> <p>The girls were aiming to start a non-profit providing alternative work options. In this case hospitality training (cleaning and making rooms or waitering in hotels), because they’d seen that the training was available and funders were offering money to pay for it. The trouble was they just couldn’t get buy in or take up from the men they were trying to help. </p> <p>After some discussion it transpired that given a choice, all the men wanted to do was set up and run their own small street stalls, mostly as food vendors. Cleaning rooms or running after hotel clients was not their idea of an improvement. </p> <p>This raises a really important point in the design of social programmes. The intervening agent often works from their own point of view, assumes they know what’s best, and doesn’t actually listen properly to the people they want to help. </p> <p>The intent is pure but the approach is driven by what they can offer rather than what is requested. To create outcomes that last, social entrepreneurs must listen to and work within the motivations of the people they want to help. If they cannot provide what’s both wanted and needed, they’re unlikely to be successful with lasting transformation. </p> <p>----------</p> <p><em>While in Thailand I also worked with a series of other projects, from Medical Negligence to Rice Farming, Multi-lingual Learning and Elephant Rescue, but I’m going to have to save those for another post!</em></p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/n5G97P-wYLE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/11/projects-in-thailand-part-1-start-ups.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-73505038784582897142011-11-10T07:16:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:38:20.398+02:00Adventures in North-Eastern Thailand.<p><em>From September 2010</em></p> <p>My first stop outside Bangkok and on my way up north, was a detour west for a break with Angelina in Kanchanaburi. </p> <p>Kanchanaburi has a population of 50,000 and was originally established by King Rama I in the 1700s as a first line of defence against the Burmese. It is located where the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai rivers converge into the Mae Klong. </p> <p>In 1942 about 180,000 Asian labourers and 60,000 Allied POWs were forced by the Japanese to built the Burma Thailand Railway. Almost half the workforce died from the appalling conditions they were forced to work under; hence it’s other name: The Death Railway. It was made famous by the book and film The Bridge on the River Kwai. The immortalised Bridge 277 lies over the river at Kanchanaburi, and the railway tracks at this place have become a tourist memorial of the horrors of World` War II. </p> <p>Half a century later, the surrounding area is tranquil and beautiful and the river is lined with plush resorts, hostels and campsites catering to the wide range and number of tourists that visit. Angelina and I decided to go pay our respects too, on our first weekend getaway from working in Bangkok. </p> <p>We grabbed a slice of luxury at the brand new Dheva Mantra Resort, and cashed in on the peacefulness of being the only guests. As a hotel it got a 10 out of 10 from both of us for everything from it’s situation on the banks of the River Kwai, to the fab rooms and service.&#160; </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MAMngH6aRkg/Trtcc56p8NI/AAAAAAAADk4/i0Jlqysbmac/s1600-h/P1090697%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090697" border="0" alt="P1090697" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-QZSiFlMeYow/TrtceeHHKuI/AAAAAAAADlA/GTxZi_RDX3M/P1090697_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-j-jv39kN87I/TrtcgEdzSGI/AAAAAAAADlI/8PNb6lKO1i0/s1600-h/P1090632%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090632" border="0" alt="P1090632" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-S3rnrvga37w/TrtchrJvNTI/AAAAAAAADlQ/IwguqY5Kjdc/P1090632_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;</p> <p>The bridge itself is located about 1km downstream from the hotel, so we hired ourselves a canoe and saw the bridge and railway from the water underneath; happily separated from the hordes of tourists wandering around on the tracks above. If you’re comfortable on water and have the energy, I totally recommend this as the best way to see the bridge and experience the area. You really get to soak it in, and especially upstream of the bridge you’re the only people on or around the water. </p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-XXDlu-Q0v-w/TrtcjLfwoYI/AAAAAAAADlY/dXzSTQFJKJo/s1600-h/DSCF6245%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Death Railway" border="0" alt="Death Railway" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-vwZJXyel0IQ/Trtckayi0qI/AAAAAAAADlg/tIPb0iTtQ6A/DSCF6245_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-porK00yT_rk/TrtcmR0htBI/AAAAAAAADlo/07aWQEzQXc8/s1600-h/DSCF6241%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Bridge over the River Kwai" border="0" alt="Bridge over the River Kwai" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-l7eMXva4oU8/TrtcnTTFEUI/AAAAAAAADlw/o8yDOeYV5Pc/DSCF6241_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-HIMTczM4veo/TrtcpPdFjuI/AAAAAAAADl0/PYSaJivL6LU/s1600-h/DSCF62484.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Canoeing down the River Kwai" border="0" alt="Canoeing down the River Kwai" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-AcB3L2CG6Bk/Trtcqw5DOZI/AAAAAAAADmA/REAjBYO8DmE/DSCF6248_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-uHp8DvBfR_o/Trtcs3_ji1I/AAAAAAAADmI/9wT30Z2M228/s1600-h/DSCF62494.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pagoda at Wat Thawonwararam just downstream from the Bridge" border="0" alt="Pagoda at Wat Thawonwararam just downstream from the Bridge" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-RejqkSkwENA/Trtct5KVAqI/AAAAAAAADmQ/PIFi31XypMk/DSCF6249_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a></p> <p align="left">Angelina returned home to KL from Kanchanaburi and I carried on with the journey through Thailand, moving North with one of the rice farming projects I met up with in BKK. There had been a rice Expo in Bangkok while I was there and I was connected with Somruay Phadpol who founded and runs an integrated farming project in the Nan province. We had an illuminating conversation and he asked if I’d be willing to travel up to the Nan province to help with some of the challenges he was facing. </p> <p align="left">So off I went, 700km on a night bus to Nan. 10 hours of light and movies and music at a time when all I wanted to do was sleep. It’s always daytime on Thai buses!</p> <p align="left">My chaperone up to Nan was an Ashoka staff member, but my guide and translator was Phimonphan Sakitram, also known as Pang. Through Pang I got to experience the real life of Thailand, from really early morning starts and heavy breakfasts, to Thai coffee, bug fighting and crispy fried maggot snacks.</p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-LaiAQSRIOQk/TrtcwNVatII/AAAAAAAADmY/wk1Dz-vfgbE/s1600-h/P10909302.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pang getting me introduced to local iced coffee" border="0" alt="Pang getting me introduced to local iced coffee" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-WXPLNjoUkJQ/TrtcxvVR6JI/AAAAAAAADmg/Jz3dpaYXZkY/P1090930_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <h4><strong>Nan:</strong> </h4> <p align="left">The city of Nan dates back to the 14th century, when it was one of the 9 northern Thai-Lao principalities of the Lanna Kingdom a.k.a the Kingdom of a Million Rice Fields. Elements of Lanna architecture are still common in small details like on the roofs of the wooden houses and stilt constructions that dominate the rural areas.</p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-x7sj6kO6iOw/TrtczPZsJlI/AAAAAAAADmo/V6mI3d2K0Ns/s1600-h/P1100080%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Lanna architectural detail" border="0" alt="Lanna architectural detail" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-4bg9PL7ioME/Trtc02lA0iI/AAAAAAAADmw/3yEMFZOOvxk/P1100080_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-DJH7SUI79Yw/Trtc3PZq0qI/AAAAAAAADm4/GK3e1vWA_Po/s1600-h/P1090812%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Wooden Stilt Construction" border="0" alt="Wooden Stilt Construction" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-a3LQ79AXyNo/Trtc44loy4I/AAAAAAAADnA/jnBZ1wRzdHk/P1090812_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-4hz08McIp_8/Trtc68vzwPI/AAAAAAAADnI/qQxWlt0dYWk/s1600-h/P1090757.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Towns in the Nan Province" border="0" alt="Towns in the Nan Province" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-dIAzejrEnE4/Trtc8m385ZI/AAAAAAAADnQ/jgcrwl2nzDc/P1090757_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Eok2cpJ88Tg/Trtc-vJHfWI/AAAAAAAADnY/0K2CkDxDrX0/s1600-h/P1090811%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Town main street in the Nan Province" border="0" alt="Town main street in the Nan Province" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-XLVVnfRzs0E/TrtdAvlXu9I/AAAAAAAADng/25od9Xm5Hds/P1090811_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p>Like most of Thailand, the Nan province has great roads. Much of Thailand was rebuilt with American help and investment after the Vietnam War, and the infrastructure reflects the quality that comes with newer techniques. Nevertheless it’s strange to see poor villages with wooden houses that don't&#160; <br />even have glass, scattered around fantastic first-world roads.</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-5aipeA-OuX4/TrtdCr001BI/AAAAAAAADno/cCDRrpg0rW4/s1600-h/P1090844%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090844" border="0" alt="P1090844" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/--Re5u9Rxyf0/TrtdEN4NHpI/AAAAAAAADnw/NLNCzDCQMBg/P1090844_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Fp0QPRJcQAg/TrtdF9ieU2I/AAAAAAAADn4/Q4rwzy1DDEs/s1600-h/P1090841%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090841" border="0" alt="P1090841" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-RaTffk_gEMs/TrtdHjIQAdI/AAAAAAAADoA/MGEyB6lZEAI/P1090841_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p>The city centre of Nan itself reminded me of Puerto Montt in Chile. A hardworking intersection of shops, with tangles of electric lines streaming across and down the main roads.</p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-4gnNpdDgAMs/TrtdI-CiLdI/AAAAAAAADoI/F7639UxfiRY/s1600-h/P1090922%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Nan City Centre" border="0" alt="Nan City Centre" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-n3RXjRM-OYM/TrtdKowlSvI/AAAAAAAADoQ/Df4PJGr1o3M/P1090922_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-mmGaRBojyQk/TrtdNS5QmjI/AAAAAAAADoY/ey7uoevjqKQ/s1600-h/P1090919%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Nan City Centre" border="0" alt="Nan City Centre" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-wnPKjCh3zNs/TrtdO0mFPoI/AAAAAAAADog/VXTFL775Dl0/P1090919_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <br />The monsoon kicks in between August and October, and floods are common across Thailand. This year as I’m sure you know, they’ve been unusually bad. More than 500 people have died already in Thailand and the number keeps going up. My friends in Thailand tell me that most of the severe flooding is in central Thailand, and those in Nan have been spared the worst of it. The international community needs to step in and do their bit with support in the form of donations to flood relief programs. As mentioned in my last post, the official routes to help are listed here - <a title="http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation" href="http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation">http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation</a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gy-qj4LEL94/TrtdQjBgeTI/AAAAAAAADoo/qez_T6BRkqw/s1600-h/P1090813%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Floods in the Nan Province last year" border="0" alt="Floods in the Nan Province last year" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-yToX9BWWnbI/TrtdSBMZWWI/AAAAAAAADow/Cn0JfGNEHBA/P1090813_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ul5IElf0JQY/TrtdTqvQsTI/AAAAAAAADo4/xACmSCg5Xco/s1600-h/P1090814%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Floods in the Nan Province last year" border="0" alt="Floods in the Nan Province last year" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-I0gbrk4DBIY/TrtdVSMkuWI/AAAAAAAADpA/Xi7Hw9K7SXk/P1090814_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left">The rainy season also brings the Nan Boat races. There are usually about 150 boats involved. Each boat is made of five pieces crafted from a single tree, and have ornate Dragon Heads and Tails. Interestingly the names all start with angel. When not engaged in races, the boats are kept at temples, and Monks manage and repair the boats, and perform a small ceremony on each before the race.</p> <p align="left">The smallest boats have a crew of 30, going up to 50 or 60 for the mid-sized boats and 80 rowers for the largest boats. Each community can race one of each. Men and women race on separate days. The races are grouped by boat size, and the Winner gets presented a trophy by Princess Siritorn. Last year they had 200 boats. Wooden paddles. Old boats used to have high curved&#160; ends but now flat and long for speed and advantage at the finish. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-0wZSeUh-gjo/TrtdW55tQZI/AAAAAAAADpI/1PFdU2HjdX0/s1600-h/P10907293.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Boat awaiting the festivities on the Nan River." border="0" alt="Boat awaiting the festivities on the Nan River." src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MyFTyHitV6o/TrtdYRpnNDI/AAAAAAAADpQ/5QjBCyleaPE/P1090729_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-vDB7pCKrnX4/TrtdZ7zHHvI/AAAAAAAADpY/gN_anicMsGU/s1600-h/P10907301.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The Boat Race. Much excitement and festivities" border="0" alt="The Boat Race. Much excitement and festivities" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-RrxB-_9Q2jo/TrtdbveYMdI/AAAAAAAADpg/enDzbSNKIKo/P1090730_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-6oVUoz64lcE/Trtdc1r6s_I/AAAAAAAADpo/-EdDSflt3_4/s1600-h/P109082316.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Crews practising" border="0" alt="Crews practising" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-lzdBdipKqYk/TrtdfMtHfjI/AAAAAAAADpw/JYy0oMGvVIQ/P1090823_thumb16.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a></p> <p align="left">The rain is also crucial for rice production which is widespread across Thailand. Away from the flooding, September landscapes look lush and green with rice fields everywhere you turn. </p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-BGPdT3Snl4U/TrtdgzE8a0I/AAAAAAAADp4/2vhepJ0E_0I/s1600-h/P1090788%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Rice paddies in Northern Thailand, with an experimentation plot in the foreground" border="0" alt="Rice paddies in Northern Thailand, with an experimentation plot in the foreground" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ZzJ0grU_deA/TrtdigGRZiI/AAAAAAAADqA/ueXmmqHpqEU/P1090788_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-7lO7NvaaZMM/TrtdkdebYAI/AAAAAAAADqI/bGl1tQTmMBg/s1600-h/P1090793%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Farmer spraying pesticides on rice" border="0" alt="Farmer spraying pesticides on rice" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-dnj5eTIcFp4/TrtdlkCJUxI/AAAAAAAADqQ/FkQVXgpH4co/P1090793_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left">Nan is also well known for an unusually high number of temples. There are 20 temples in the city. One for every community. Regardless of the poverty in their areas, temples remain bright and gold and red, often with ornate plaster facades designed to look like cloth banners. They are beautifully maintained and well topped up with local donations. The good temples pour the money back into their communities, while others just soak up the money.</p> <p align="left">Out of the many, I visited one of the most famous: Wat Phumin. Outside, the steps are flanked by two huge snakes, known as Nagas. Inside are superbly preserved murals of illustrating the previous births of the Buddha as well as scenes of the local life at the time of restoration in the 1800’s. </p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/--JvcjNb4Qhw/TrtdnqDJsHI/AAAAAAAADqY/J9g8NgzGoXI/s1600-h/P1090900%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Naga. Wat Phumin, Nan, Thailand" border="0" alt="Naga. Wat Phumin, Nan, Thailand" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-vq1v9hi1FlE/TrtdpJ1AJ0I/AAAAAAAADqg/T9U5Nb08fBA/P1090900_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Nj_9-5JDxXg/Trtdrt15czI/AAAAAAAADqo/27Bd-FuXK0I/s1600-h/P1090858%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Even the monks are Golden" border="0" alt="Even the monks are Golden" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-2UlEaiv2B58/TrtdtwEcL4I/AAAAAAAADqw/WfPmlB7GMJs/P1090858_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-BH2lFm0frhg/TrtdvH1lptI/AAAAAAAADq4/T4lfcasPXNo/s1600-h/P1090867%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090867" border="0" alt="P1090867" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-bqEkzBRQpVM/Trtdw3wA3fI/AAAAAAAADrA/AIQ9aSlX3VY/P1090867_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-M7rgd3xjhhw/TrtdyJ8uB8I/AAAAAAAADrI/hYqkH7ULqe4/s1600-h/P1090885%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Four Buddhas in the Sukothai style. Apparently the shape of the ears and nose show a Lao influence." border="0" alt="Four Buddhas in the Sukothai style. Apparently the shape of the ears and nose show a Lao influence." src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-FfouA5fhafc/TrtdziMU4WI/AAAAAAAADrQ/_b3F0g9f4zE/P1090885_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a></p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-3JSZE8WbvCg/Trtd1L7SvaI/AAAAAAAADrY/h3LFD-9FQNk/s1600-h/P1090868%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Murals inside Wat Phumin" border="0" alt="Murals inside Wat Phumin" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-WDulNJaWyNQ/Trtd3LuytgI/AAAAAAAADrg/K5GGVu62cMM/P1090868_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a>&#160;<img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Murals inside Wat Phumin" border="0" alt="Murals inside Wat Phumin" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/--5p9W5B4ZEE/Trtd4VGCgDI/AAAAAAAADro/V6MfdRGniqI/P1090869_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></p> <p align="left">Thailand is well known for it’s food, and the North East is no exception. Being near the water means it’s all about seafood. Everything was super tasty and spicy, and served with rice. Loved it!</p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-k7xQJ6XiF3Q/Trtd5R-IyzI/AAAAAAAADrw/uOsgti96rQQ/s1600-h/P1090827%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Taken out for dinner along the river by the Joko team after a late workshop" border="0" alt="Taken out for dinner along the river by the Joko team after a late workshop" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-NQJJEb1s-Io/Trtd7szvtpI/AAAAAAAADr4/U3V7sgG_nkI/P1090827_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="376" /></a> </p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-1GRjskorYpQ/Trtd9Sp8dfI/AAAAAAAADsA/L8367j9TK4A/s1600-h/P1090819%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Spicy Tom Yum Goong" border="0" alt="Spicy Tom Yum Goong" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-nfN0TWQ3Z_w/Trtd-1kf0SI/AAAAAAAADsI/NnUzfSUzNmY/P1090819_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="183" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-uP5igUO73cg/TrteAhnv6jI/AAAAAAAADsQ/U1-Ywua9F0I/s1600-h/P1090820%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="Sesame fried fish" border="0" alt="Sesame fried fish" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-LwJMg1-r99s/TrteCXq-r-I/AAAAAAAADsY/STSXUxsVTe8/P1090820_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p align="left">Breakfast is proper food too. Something that takes getting used to if you’re foreign. Eating noodles, fried meat or any other meal that usually qualifies as lunch or dinner is tough going at 7am if you’ve grown up eating toast and cereal! Even eggs don’t really prepare you. I have to admit I struggled, but a man’s gotta eat, and you take what’s on offer. In the end I found noodle soups to be the way forward. Rice with meat and fried vegetables was usually too much for my half-asleep body!</p> <p align="left"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-i93QzDBPpnE/TrteD3nKYxI/AAAAAAAADsg/te9dc-0qGE8/s1600-h/P10907262.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Local restaurant near my accommodation" border="0" alt="Local restaurant near my accommodation" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-FMYoynsTaL8/TrteFZmTz1I/AAAAAAAADso/pYRcQUHTcLA/P1090726_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-5KLpnz5h2KM/TrteG659TCI/AAAAAAAADsw/CCrolK4573o/s1600-h/P10909242.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Breakfast." border="0" alt="Breakfast." src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-s7WukubPw78/TrteIu3fHQI/AAAAAAAADs4/mCIt9CaIu_Q/P1090924_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160; </p> <h4>Projects</h4> <p>My travel destinations are always dictated by the projects that invite me there, and Thailand was no exception. Most of time in Nan was spent working with an organisation called Joko, focused on improving quality of life for rice farmers in the region. They were already working with about 4000 farmers and were facing a range of survival and scaling challenges. But that’s a story for a dedicated post on the various projects I was involved with in Thailand. Coming up after a final travelogue on my travels in North Western Thailand.</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-XNFPEd50EDc/TrteKDuaLmI/AAAAAAAADtA/JFqXfac5WqA/s1600-h/P1090913%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="P1090913" border="0" alt="P1090913" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-M1QUQgyZiSA/TrteMFaI7KI/AAAAAAAADtI/adONeGOe8SE/P1090913_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="376" /></a></p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/0w57PzfVrYg" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/11/adventures-in-north-eastern-thailand.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-76574585596538090412011-10-18T06:37:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.669+02:00Adventures In Bangkok<p>NOTE – This post is based on my travel to Bangkok just over a year ago. Unfortunately Bangkok right now is under severe threat of flooding with a death toll passing 300 already. Eight million people in 60 of the country's 77 provinces have been affected by floods and mudslides since July, and 1.2 million hectares of agricultural land have been damaged. Here’s the official places where you can donate to help Thailand cope with the floods - <a title="http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation" href="http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation">http://www.bangkokpost.com/feature/charities/203275/information-for-flood-donation</a></p> <p>------------------------</p> <p>My time in Bangkok started in the home of my friend Dev, overlooking the Chao Praya just near the Phra pin klao bridge. When you’ve been on the move for a while it’s always nice to come to a new place and have friends to stay with rather than the usual hostel. In between me working and Dev doing his MBA, we chilled out over beers, explored the illusion that is ‘social’ investment, toured the city and watched Bear Grylls be a hero in Man vs. Wild.</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-GRU-wWJC9CU/Tp0BpUFQenI/AAAAAAAADdk/OHXbw4FFO88/s1600-h/P1090526%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="View of the Chao Praya River and the Phra Pin Klao Bridge" border="0" alt="View of the Chao Praya River and the Phra Pin Klao Bridge" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ZD1hb8AQNFE/Tp0BqGVlYII/AAAAAAAADds/vH2jIXzDY7s/P1090526_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-QzeEXVfgUhc/Tp0BrqSrv6I/AAAAAAAADd0/1esxRiMAbQk/s1600-h/P1090530.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Downtown Bangkok in the distance" border="0" alt="Downtown Bangkok in the distance" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-vM9OpneB7SI/Tp0Bs8qhoiI/AAAAAAAADd8/pefmOirOF0M/P1090530_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-BLBredzUfKw/Tp0BueylCoI/AAAAAAAADeE/iYUBBYTRz0I/s1600-h/DSCF0653%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Temples amidst the buildings" border="0" alt="Temples amidst the buildings" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-nFK-DUCHalE/Tp0BvKLA-aI/AAAAAAAADeM/kJxYbg5pjXo/DSCF0653_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="241" height="184" /></a> </p> <p>Having come from Singapore and Malaysia where beer is crazy expensive, the first thing we did was head to a pub, only to find it just as pricey. I quickly gave up on drinking as a way to kill time in BKK! </p> <p>Bangkok does however have a lot of cool bars down small streets, but you need to be in the know to avoid ending up in shifty places. In a city as multicultural as Bangkok you can also eat pretty much anything you want. We even munched on Shawarma in “Little Middle East”, which was just like being on Edgware Road in London with its plethora of bright white lights.</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-gtFjzoDyG6E/Tp0BwQmiKuI/AAAAAAAADeU/B1eHeL1BYA8/s1600-h/P10905062.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dev and one of his friends in a pub called The Londoner with painfully priced beer" border="0" alt="Dev and one of his friends in a pub called The Londoner with painfully priced beer" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-007Ew4xOtT8/Tp0BxAQKR9I/AAAAAAAADec/dlrH-lmlDwg/P1090506_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Hqp4f0Ka4fc/Tp0ByU60DpI/AAAAAAAADek/C1WJ_wBdvfA/s1600-h/P10905072.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Expat bar. Cool place but seedy lighting" border="0" alt="Expat bar. Cool place but seedy lighting" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-phx9RYEHZ1o/Tp0By6gHyEI/AAAAAAAADes/hOtqu_PCspY/P1090507_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-PWH9GJbu4L4/Tp0B0PcPX5I/AAAAAAAADe0/Bs_6QL023m8/s1600-h/P11003662.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Indian food!" border="0" alt="Indian food!" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-DI2XQnWQ8dU/Tp0B0_cm7hI/AAAAAAAADe8/sBnuSD6G4fA/P1100366_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-4ZoVq4T3yVw/Tp0B2DEUB4I/AAAAAAAADfE/iwk4WTPDdzA/s1600-h/P11003702.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Little &#39;Middle East&#39;" border="0" alt="Little &#39;Middle East&#39;" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-5ulKGUO7Dt8/Tp0B2wNFnlI/AAAAAAAADfM/u-tBLb6q1cY/P1100370_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> </p> <p>Khao San Road is the tourist hotspot and backpacker haven. In a city where hectic is the norm, Khao San road takes it to another level at night. You can barely move for street vendors and food stalls and dodgy offers. Forget fake designer goods and bootlegs CDs; you can even buy everything from IDs to Degrees. The only way to enjoy it is to leave your ethics and morals at the entrance, and if that’s not your thing, best avoid. Plenty better things to do in Bangkok.</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-sIAxCe8PdGc/Tp0B4CUTz8I/AAAAAAAADfU/oiVlKOJUHrw/s1600-h/P10905192.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Yes you can buy pretty much anything you want on Khao San Road" border="0" alt="Yes you can buy pretty much anything you want on Khao San Road" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-bMZZNVOvbGc/Tp0B5G1_5BI/AAAAAAAADfc/k7VOokQ3HyM/P1090519_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MIGPlJW_8HI/Tp0B558HmJI/AAAAAAAADfk/RLnc50HS3xs/s1600-h/P10905172.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Market and food stalls crowd the streets at night" border="0" alt="Market and food stalls crowd the streets at night" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-YQZ_HXDlYeA/Tp0B62m6kTI/AAAAAAAADfs/bUXFAcz4sq0/P1090517_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-lIswt6JbOp8/Tp0B7_uBItI/AAAAAAAADf0/Vdyr7NJvz44/s1600-h/P10905221.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="We do not check ID cards just about sums it up" border="0" alt="We do not check ID cards just about sums it up" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-7Fx6ISFhu_4/Tp0B804Y_mI/AAAAAAAADf8/anB8LU_ntCU/P1090522_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-E3GcXJieq0g/Tp0B98x2GRI/AAAAAAAADgE/ZODJAwDztlo/s1600-h/DSCF06244.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Khao San road not quite so bad during the day" border="0" alt="Khao San road not quite so bad during the day" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-iCxGGUZE5F8/Tp0B-gVGqVI/AAAAAAAADgM/lbi6SHuXi9U/DSCF0624_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p>If you’re a city person, you’ll love Bangkok. It’s the most alive of any place I’ve been. A writhing pulsing city of people and colour and activity.</p> <p>BKK has decent infrastructure from rail transport to cool buildings, internet, accommodation and malls. 5 star hotels are ridiculously cheap and don’t disappoint in any way. Although why anyone would bother beats me, because there are superb hostels like Lub.d near Siam square for example, which is just 500baht (£10) for a bed in a state of the art dorm.&#160; </p> <p>The airport link into the city is just 15baht and takes you into Phaya Thai in half an hour. The Skytrain runs through the city giving great views of streets and&#160; buildings and skylines. Confusingly though, the Skytrain and MRT have different names for the same crossover station e.g. Asoka and Sukhumvit; Siam and Silom. There are also lots of flyovers providing double level road systems in a clever use of space. </p> <p>Compared to a city like Mumbai or Delhi, Bangkok’s infrastructure is definitely on another level. </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gdJbROCve5M/Tp0B_rP2xiI/AAAAAAAADgU/Mf-eOt80CUY/s1600-h/P1100333%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bangkok Skytrain " border="0" alt="Bangkok Skytrain " src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-UWFfbPqdGdY/Tp0CAybeARI/AAAAAAAADgc/_cV-aRSWsOo/P1100333_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>Sadly for the transport aspect, it still doesn’t mean much. BKK has a population of somewhere around 10m people and the main links are mostly two lane roads. They have no hope of coping. The traffic during rush hour is mind-boggling. Up there with the worst I’ve seen. It can take hours to get across the city. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-vppxWimuAqM/Tp0CCNRLemI/AAAAAAAADgg/8JbTFN4auZ4/s1600-h/P10905652.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rush hour traffic in BKK " border="0" alt="Rush hour traffic in BKK " src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/--yKAMbK4Icg/Tp0CC46FNbI/AAAAAAAADgo/0vJUAbdu7lI/P1090565_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160; <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-vWRzvzoW1us/Tp0CD6GaHCI/AAAAAAAADg0/EHfY7vJyBkE/s1600-h/DSCF06142.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="When your taxi driver pulls out a newspaper en-route you know you&#39;re in for the long haul!" border="0" alt="When your taxi driver pulls out a newspaper en-route you know you&#39;re in for the long haul!" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-OZU-4HpOMS0/Tp0CErbd6rI/AAAAAAAADg8/PYTeA_EPaFk/DSCF0614_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>The only alternative option is the Motorcycle taxi. But these are frightening as hell to the un-initiated. They drive between car lanes at crazy speeds. Wing mirrors loom way too close for comfort, especially when you're double the size of both rider and bike, and the guy is adjusting for his own knee width and not yours! </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-wL42uiA2mZs/Tp0CGKYpt1I/AAAAAAAADhE/dFqUujrSTvk/s1600-h/P10905994.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Main cross street. Sukhuimvit, Bangkok" border="0" alt="Main cross street. Sukhuimvit, Bangkok" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-6pJFfgwE8xc/Tp0CHWcc5qI/AAAAAAAADhM/yJllBHjLyQQ/P1090599_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="667" /></a> </p> <p>As you would expect though, away from the main roads, the backstreets of Bangkok are ramshackle mazes, reflective of life in low income brackets all over Asia. Canals wind through the city, flanked by shanty homes that use the water as a cleaning and dumping ground. You definitely wouldn’t want to fall in if you could help it!</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-JAwU-tIwxrQ/Tp0CIUZsv4I/AAAAAAAADhU/7hJk-CciwJk/s1600-h/DSCF0642%25255B1%25255D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="One of the many small canals that wnd through the city" border="0" alt="One of the many small canals that wnd through the city" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Sl2mWbw8KPE/Tp0CJV2kSiI/AAAAAAAADhc/ck9I8TyMA_E/DSCF0642_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-mdMC6a3cd7Q/Tp0CKXDsk7I/AAAAAAAADhk/LWiFq9SAIlc/s1600-h/P10905913.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bangkok backstreets" border="0" alt="Bangkok backstreets" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Xn3wluuv0G0/Tp0CLjnkZtI/AAAAAAAADhs/7eyH_Dk2oUQ/P1090591_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-IkXU06zzeaU/Tp0CM25ZaUI/AAAAAAAADh0/Qu4AtYlovmE/s1600-h/P10905923.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bangkok backstreets" border="0" alt="Bangkok backstreets" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-E25i-5w90G4/Tp0CN6fSOWI/AAAAAAAADh8/P-WY8QbWQPs/P1090592_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-o05XOUQfUMg/Tp0CPLOud2I/AAAAAAAADiE/aOcXYniV65o/s1600-h/DSCF06443.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guys watching and betting on Muay Thai " border="0" alt="Guys watching and betting on Muay Thai " src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-pYlWGHLZdpk/Tp0CQK3Es9I/AAAAAAAADiM/KmNX45VEon0/DSCF0644_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a> </p> <p>Politically BKK has been a bit volatile ever since Thaksin was deposed for corruption and is still in self-imposed exile. The Thaksin legacy of social development remains strongly recognised however, and many locals still feel that the benefits of his work outweigh his misdemeanours. The reds nevertheless were busy fighting the yellows while I was there. Random bombs and riots across the city had a serious effect on the tourism industry as visitors stayed away out of a combination of fear and the financial limitations of a global recession. </p> <p>Areas like Nana that used to be jammed full of business and other tourists when I was last there, were relative ghost towns. Middle eastern tourists were propping up the tourism market, with western visitors all dried up except for backpackers who mostly frequent just the Khao San area. You can still get designer T-shirts for 100 baht in places like the Chatuchak weekend market, but not so many fake watches anymore. All round I definitely saw fewer fakes than ten years ago, and it seemed as if the trend had moved on from watches to sunglasses. </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-2x34jXSfvFQ/Tp0CRZjYfEI/AAAAAAAADiU/0tWaAjvxAOs/s1600-h/P11003633.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Nana. Some years ago you wouldn&#39;t have been able to see the stalls for tourists" border="0" alt="Nana. Some years ago you wouldn&#39;t have been able to see the stalls for tourists" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-SUW21rXniiY/Tp0CS9QUQJI/AAAAAAAADic/Oehk4r06rSs/P1100363_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>Temples remain Gold and Red as ever, richly decorated, with Buddhas of all shapes and sizes; while outside them lies the commerce of food, trinkets, beliefs and scams. </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-he-NcImB04w/Tp0CUGrljyI/AAAAAAAADik/Eu6SJmpaiWA/s1600-h/DSCF06493.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Inside one of the temples in Bangkok" border="0" alt="Inside one of the temples in Bangkok" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-F9y_dSC_BkE/Tp0CU0YmwWI/AAAAAAAADis/GEaasRQZILg/DSCF0649_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="176" height="235" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-oQhCZVFWgqw/Tp0CWS8i_gI/AAAAAAAADi0/1lh8EWNEdJw/s1600-h/DSCF06383.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Good luck and happiness for 90 baht" border="0" alt="Good luck and happiness for 90 baht" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-9uFO7qckvyw/Tp0CXMMyKTI/AAAAAAAADi8/6z3hVllDyRE/DSCF0638_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="235" /></a></p> <p>Finally we come to the food. Street food is everywhere in Bangkok and really why would you eat anywhere else. Your choices range from noodles to rice dishes to skewers and sea food. Everything is tasty and spicy. The Thais can really put away chillies so you have to be a bit careful. Like everywhere else in Asia it is common to eat fried food or noodles or soup for breakfast. Personally I did my best but still found it jarring. My system is just not used to lunch at 7am! </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-6vohGlvP5Ug/Tp0CYKsmCcI/AAAAAAAADjE/XQwgNPjhuLU/s1600-h/CIMG24632.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Mobile food stall. Genius." border="0" alt="Mobile food stall. Genius." src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-5EUb5wMzYfA/Tp0CYzjwE3I/AAAAAAAADjM/Bp0o5nc2vtE/CIMG2463_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-okt2AQPfm9I/Tp0CaGKRR-I/AAAAAAAADjU/R51Dt9pYdLk/s1600-h/DSCF06332.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Noodles on the street" border="0" alt="Noodles on the street" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-otnirURY_Hs/Tp0Ca1DZZJI/AAAAAAAADjc/hi0TE9x0XU0/DSCF0633_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-dUPJWede1Gg/Tp0Ccek0aoI/AAAAAAAADjk/UQw9CcuGoVc/s1600-h/DSCF06312.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Tourists getting stuck in" border="0" alt="Tourists getting stuck in" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Q7xSWz1vwOk/Tp0CdHJkWHI/AAAAAAAADjs/eo8D3C8wmEQ/DSCF0631_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ogCCnW47IF0/Tp0CeeFXykI/AAAAAAAADj0/N_Vnz3CnjCY/s1600-h/DSCF06252.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Corn" border="0" alt="Corn" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MfcJsTWt7uA/Tp0CexMjx0I/AAAAAAAADj8/I0ahfDHdydE/DSCF0625_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p></p> <p>On foot, it’s a city that makes it impossible to have a conversation on the street. Lethal pavements with all sorts of obstacles from vendors to trees, holes and crevasses keep you on your toes. Crazy car drivers about to run you over approach from all directions. Construction noise never stops. Massage parlour girls beckon you. Taxi drivers call at you. Food and waste smells assault your nose. Hot humid weather wraps a clammy shroud around you. Water drips on you from plastic awnings, billboards and signs. </p> <p>It’s just a never-ending blast of sensory overload into the wee hours of the night. I love it.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Samsung/Local%20Settings/Temp/WindowsLiveWriter-429641856/supfiles9E9D49/P10905758.jpg"></a></p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/jC6Lsa1w_qc" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/10/adventures-in-bangkok.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-85611947969286414312011-07-18T13:00:00.006+02:002011-11-19T12:55:20.318+02:00Globosocial Adventures: The Journey 2009 - 2011<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I am now in North Africa, on the final leg of my journey, entering a world of real life revolutions and desert heat; after having traveled and worked through different countries in South America, the Indian Subcontinent, South East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. I've struggled to post as I've been tied up offline, but updates will be coming your way for Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya as soon as I finally take a break in September. Desperately behind I know, but hope you'll bear with me :)<br />
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Meantime, the 100 project mark came and went somewhere during this last leg, with organisations ranging from start-ups to transgovernmental entities addressing a wide range of challenges. All along I've mostly worked behind the scenes, helping design solutions and plan the implementation of programmes, placing a focus on the long term, and doing what I can to inspire teams to aim for outcomes that didn't seem previously possible. <br />
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Over the past year or so I've also been invited to give talks at a number of Universities around the world, including Oxford, INSEAD and UEA, and have been meaning to share the slides here but they keep falling out of date faster than I can put them up! Anyway I've finally updated the deck to where I currently am in the journey, so here it is...<br />
<div id="__ss_8618081" style="width: 425px;"><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0 4px;"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/rizwantayabali/globosocial-adventures-the-journey-20092011" target="_blank" title="Globosocial Adventures - The Journey. 2009-2011.">Globosocial Adventures - The Journey. 2009-2011.</a></strong> <iframe frameborder="0" height="355" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/8618081" width="425"></iframe></div><br />
Hope you enjoy it. Leave a comment if you can and let me know what you think...</div><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/-GrhKQnOilI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/07/taking-stock-update-from-arab-world.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-33409765681090514192011-01-14T01:04:00.004+02:002011-11-10T07:26:21.076+02:00Dream AgainWhen I was in the Philippines earlier this year I spent some time working with the <a href="http://social-explorer.blogspot.com/2011/01/globosocial-adventures-in-philippines.html" target="_blank">Project Mercy School</a>, which is designed to support teenagers that have dropped out of school for a host reasons. Bit more about the project <a href="http://social-explorer.blogspot.com/2011/01/globosocial-adventures-in-philippines.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Anyway I was talking to the founder Bayon Suico about the power of dreams and she mentioned that for a lot of young people who come out of traumatised, neglected or developmentally challenged backgrounds, a major problem is that they’ve often lost the ability to dream about the future. Without dreams you have no hopes and nothing to drive you forward, so one of the key aspects of the program is to get these young people dreaming again. <br />
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Since I spend much of my life helping people turn their dreams and visions into reality, she asked me to give a talk on dreaming at the school assembly. It was a little tricky because I’ve personally never been driven by dreams. I have no idea what the future will hold, or who I want to be, or where, in 10 years, 5 years, even two years. I have no vision of the future me. I do what I can, right now, in the loose direction of continuing to be able to help others; and that’s always worked well for me.&nbsp; Nevertheless I can see the importance of dreaming and as usual tried to make it practical :)<br />
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Feel free to reuse, edit, share or translate if it’ll help. You can download the editable file from <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/rizwantayabali/dream-again-4854466" target="_blank">Slideshare</a>.<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/9QTkWhrKBII" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/01/dream-again.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-36231989347233847972011-01-13T00:06:00.001+02:002011-11-14T13:40:58.453+02:00Globosocial Projects in Malaysia<p>After easing back into social development towards the end of my Philippines journey, Malaysia was really about getting back into the swing of things. Hard to believe I know, when you look at the pictures in my <a href="http://social-explorer.blogspot.com/2011/01/adventures-in-malaysia.html" target="_blank">previous post</a>, but the bulk of my time was spent switching between a number of projects.</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4llmzC72I/AAAAAAAADKY/Isn-lMMvqPI/s1600-h/P10903773.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Workshop with the Project EPIC team" border="0" alt="Workshop with the Project EPIC team" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lmm3pCRI/AAAAAAAADKc/LyLijbTafkY/P1090377_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a>&#160; </p> <p>Interestingly the majority were related to political change. Malaysia has around 120 different ethnicities across its 13 states and 3 federal territories. It has 9 Sultans, in between whom the Kingship rotates every five years.</p> <p>After independence from the British in 1957, the Malaysian Government instituted a range of affirmative action policies to ensure economic development of ethnic Malays. This was due to run for 20 years, over which policies meant to ensure level playing fields evolved into cronyism and mechanisms to further the interests of the dominant ethnic group. At the end of the 20 years, UMNO not only reinstated the legislation but moved it further in the direction of benefitting ethnics Malays. To qualify as Malay you have be both of the ethnic group and Muslim. </p> <p>The outcome is a two tier economy, with Indians, Chinese and other ethnicities who make up a significant proportion of the population being discriminated against in everything from business to education and opportunity. If you’re interested to know more, I’d recommend reading “<em>I Too Am Malay</em>” by Zaid Ibrahim. </p> <p>As a result there are lots of organisations and people involved in pushing for change and equality of all Malaysians. The various entities and individuals have to be careful because of the risk presented by Malaysia’s Special Branch i.e. Secret Service who help ensure the status quo continues.</p> <p>All the various entities involved are essentially working towards the same goal, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy for everyone to see how they fit together. Working behind the scenes with a number of them, however, meant it became possible for me to help create a unified development model and facilitate working together. </p> <ul> <li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/UPMalaysia" target="_blank"><strong>Untuk Perubahan Malaysia</strong></a><strong> – Political Change &amp; Social Inclusion <br /></strong>I met Jonson Chong through a mutual connection and started helping with his fledgling programme to ensure large scale political change with a focus on social inclusion. Simply advocating for change without viable alternatives is often a poor idea and a key reason why many movements simply result in the same problems recurring after what appears to be a significant surface shift.&#160; <br /> <br />One way to ensure sustainable improvement in politics is to increase citizen involvement and improve the quality of the next generation of politicians. Simply changing party, or rewriting rules and policy doesn’t necessarily solve the problem. We therefore focused on designing a movement to result in better politicians over a practical timeframe of three elections away. <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lnqveFsI/AAAAAAAADKg/8E2ajZJdlrU/s1600-h/P10902471.jpg"> <br /> <br /><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Malaysian context" border="0" alt="Malaysian context" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lofIJmpI/AAAAAAAADKk/NTlKXFwdILY/P1090247_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a>&#160; <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lpQIpJYI/AAAAAAAADKo/bduLfRHGGLU/s1600-h/P1090251%5B2%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Long term planning for creating a movement" border="0" alt="Long term planning for creating a movement" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lqRXT6qI/AAAAAAAADKs/ibTlUaH-MNg/P1090251_thumb%5B6%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="363" /></a>&#160; <br /></li> <li><a href="http://dosomethingepic.net/" target="_blank"><strong>EPIC</strong></a>&#160;<strong>– Voter Registration</strong> <br />This is an organisation that stems from a basis of developing leadership in young people, and has two focus points. One driving voter registration and the other driving young people’s involvement in helping society. We looked at strategy, organisational development and long term planning, focusing on how EPIC’s hugely successful Voice Your Choice campaign could help underpin movements addressing political change and social equality. Organisations involved in this sector are all separately trying to build their own advocates and supporter bases, but EPIC’s large scale engagement with the public and the resulting Citizen Database of newly registered and politically motivated individuals could provide the bedrock for the entire sector.<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lrtF6zyI/AAAAAAAADKw/jFNH6H8digY/s1600-h/P10903351.jpg"> <br /> <br /><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Late night brainstorm with the EPIC team at Khailee&#39;s" border="0" alt="Late night brainstorm with the EPIC team at Khailee&#39;s" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lslHPkPI/AAAAAAAADK0/vU8UwEYUr40/P1090335_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a>&#160; <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lu3cbcfI/AAAAAAAADK4/g8MZTZYHHrA/s1600-h/P10903691.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Holistic sector model for political change" border="0" alt="Holistic sector model for political change" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lvzR-BJI/AAAAAAAADK8/HgQxMckNXLk/P1090369_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a>&#160;&#160;&#160; <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.loyarburok.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Loyar Burok</strong></a>&#160;<strong>– Voter Education</strong> <br />Another organisation involved in political change, but from a legal perspective and focused on Voter Education. Loyar Burok brings together a range of different legal and human rights activists. After a couple of sessions we with founder Edmund Bon, we got all the various linked groups together to share and take-up the holistic unifying model of change put together with Jonson and the EPIC team.&#160; <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lw_aHhXI/AAAAAAAADLA/1lKK81H_1iM/s1600-h/P10903793.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Session with Loyar Burok and various partners" border="0" alt="Session with Loyar Burok and various partners" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lyC7TsRI/AAAAAAAADLE/0PiGt_NZsXM/P1090379_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a>&#160; <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.blogger.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia</strong></a><strong> –</strong> <strong>Creative Activism</strong> <br />Another organisation involved in political change, but from the angle of Creative Activism. Driving use and take-up of media and creativity to impact social consciousness and mobilise people to challenge the status quo. This was a follow on from work done with Loyar Burok and we had a fairly intense session on Programme Design, Strategic Planning and the mechanism of Change. <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lywkIv9I/AAAAAAAADLI/P1p7DvC5LKg/s1600-h/P10904665.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Designing mechanisms for enabling large scale creative activism" border="0" alt="Designing mechanisms for enabling large scale creative activism" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4lzn9_UxI/AAAAAAAADLM/IH5kSGtsvaQ/P1090466_thumb7.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="203" /></a>&#160; <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.chowkids.org/" target="_blank"><strong>Nur Salam</strong></a><strong> – Anti Trafficking <br /></strong>Trafficking is just a fancy word for slavery across local or international borders. More than 2 million children are trafficked every year, half of which are trafficked in and out of South East Asia. Malaysia as a country is a start, transit and end point for trafficking; partly driven by demand from the Middle East. There are two types of trafficking. Small scale, middleman based; and large scale consortia and syndicates. The latter pose a threat not just to vulnerable individuals, but also to organisations that rescue them because they often use violent force to recapture their ‘assets’.&#160; <br /> <br />Trafficking of children occurs right from babies to teenagers, and involves both boys and girls. Children are typically trafficked for 5 reasons <br />1. Illegal Adoption (babies) <br />2. Used as Drug mules <br />3. Used as Drug Pushers <br />4. Organised Crime – Forced stealing/murder <br />5. Forced prostitution – Child Sex Tourism <br /> <br />Like many countries Malaysia has only recently passed anti-trafficking laws in 2008 and the problem is still poorly recognised or dealt with. Prosecution is prohibitively expensive and perpetrators often get away with no punishment. The biggest problem beyond identification and rescue, is what then happens to trafficked children who typically have no papers or identification on rescue. Depending on the age and trauma they also cannot identify real names or families. Not being identifiably Malaysian means the state typically does not recognise responsibility. The solution then is either detainment or deportation. Detainment means that a child is rescued from one prison and put straight into another. Deportation can be even worse, because they are simply left at borders and are highly vulnerable to being picked up by traffickers again. <br /> <br />Malaysia has few anti-trafficking organisations, and Nur Salam is a young entity, only recently set up a few years ago by founder Hartini Zainudin, but is already overwhelmed with children regularly being left on their doorsteps. They were looking after1600 children from tiny tots to teenagers when I was there a few months ago, and I’m sure its continued to face rapidly increasing demand as recognition and awareness spreads. Significant challenges therefore remain with funding and organisational structure, as well program design and delivery. The rescue and rehabilitation side is well established, but the prosecution and prevention aspect is an ongoing challenge.&#160; <br /> <br />We looked at systematising their model, programme design, governance, organisational structure, and scalability. <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l0vlLZTI/AAAAAAAADLQ/s9thbsDMreY/s1600-h/P10902813.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Children rescued from Trafficking by Nur Salam" border="0" alt="Children rescued from Trafficking by Nur Salam" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l1r5C5EI/AAAAAAAADLU/95fI2dyaT54/P1090281_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> <br /> <br /><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Map of the Effects of Trafficking" border="0" alt="Map of the Effects of Trafficking" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l3sfZdXI/AAAAAAAADLc/BGBymxejagU/P1090275_thumb24.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="363" /> <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l4hegjoI/AAAAAAAADLg/tUUABskVW6s/s1600-h/P109044815.jpg"> <br /><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Core Aspects of Rescue and Rehabilitation of Trafficked Children" border="0" alt="Core Aspects of Rescue and Rehabilitation of Trafficked Children" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l5XBLKDI/AAAAAAAADLk/RPt38gI_u9Y/P1090448_thumb20.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="365" /></a> <br /></li> <li><strong>Centre for Human Rights Studies <br /></strong>There is little research and data on Human Rights Violations in Malaysia, and this organisation was being set up to address that gap. We looked at mission, vision, programme design and strategic planning, with the aim of achieving clearly defined macro outcomes around Promoting and Protecting Human Rights. <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l6m3pJvI/AAAAAAAADLo/EIuGQJOfURc/s1600-h/P109045911.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1090459" border="0" alt="P1090459" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l7Xx0uvI/AAAAAAAADLs/yLdLLzEbxO4/P1090459_thumb10.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.huairou.org/" target="_blank"><strong>Huairou Commission</strong></a>&#160;<strong>– Women’s Development</strong> <br />The Huairou Commission is a global entity connected with Groots and UNIFEM with a primary focus on Women's Involvement and Participation in the design and development of Human Settlements. In many societies, patriarchal cultures and the marginalisation of women mean’s that urban environments often don’t cater for the needs of women thus exacerbating the problem of exclusion. For example, schools that don’t have adequate or separate toilets or sanitary disposal facilities for teenage girls, typically result in higher rates of dropout.&#160; <br /> <br />The UN has decided to build a portal for organisations and people involved in ensuring women’s rights and participation in urban development, and the Huairou Commission is delivering it. The challenge was that none of the decision makers on either side have much background in portal or technology design, leaving them at the mercy of Adaptive Path who are building it. We looked at realistic goals, feasibility, design, the business plan and requirements analysis. In truth the budget was prohibitive and this was not a demand led project, presenting a host of challenges. Given that the ball was already in motion and organisational inertia generally means that cutting losses is not an option, the best that could be done was to help raise awareness of and prepare for the likely challenges ahead. <br />&#160; </li> <li><a href="http://says.my/" target="_blank"><strong>Youth Says</strong></a><strong> – Social Marketing &amp; Campaigning</strong> <br />Finally, I was also invited by the Youth Says Malaysia team to come in for their Friday ‘Greatitude’ Session and share tips on turning good ideas and intentions into working reality. Youth Says is doing very cool stuff with reward based social marketing through their online platform. It isn’t specifically a social enterprise, but has a dual interaction system that supports non-profits and social campaigns too. Their business model is way ahead of the global pack and I suspect is destined for big things. <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l8uBUyuI/AAAAAAAADLw/eDx7fyqoyec/s1600-h/P10903063.jpg"> <br /><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Youth Says Malaysia team after a workshop on business success" border="0" alt="Youth Says Malaysia team after a workshop on business success" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l9odkeqI/AAAAAAAADL0/9z-7ckuVvE4/P1090306_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> <br /> <br />It was also a fun change to go back to a bit of creative commercial thinking and a massive brainstorming session with Khailee around connecting emotionally with audiences, threw up the formula <em><strong>ETP + 3C’s = $$</strong>&#160;</em>as a simple equation for successful and profitable online brand experiences. ETP = Emotional Trigger Point i.e. an emotive perspective your audience relates strongly to, and the 3 C’s are the 3 key things people like to do online. Connect, Comment and Contribute. <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l-sZ_VII/AAAAAAAADL4/2-4pRAtmT7w/s1600-h/P10904313.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Emotional trigger point conceptualisation session" border="0" alt="Emotional trigger point conceptualisation session" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS4l_V3P2sI/AAAAAAAADMA/Y_fDBImldhs/P1090431_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> </li> </ul> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/ObPDvLVjdk0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/01/globosocial-projects-in-malaysia.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-9704486465410661042011-01-12T02:18:00.001+02:002011-11-14T13:43:32.358+02:00Adventures in Malaysia<p>I expected Malaysia to be my first real unknown in South East Asia, and since I’d been hearing about couchsurfing all the way across South America, I decided that I’d try it out. I figured it would be a way to travel without accommodation costs, and more importantly a way to meet and get to know locals. <a href="http://www.couchsurfing.org/" target="_blank">Couchsurfing.org</a> is a website for people who love travelling to support each other. You can find places to crash, people to hang out with, and things to do. I lucked out with somewhere to stay, just as some other friends of mine offered me an empty flat in Mont Kiara, the poshest part of KL. Talk about lucky! </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxeby5CPI/AAAAAAAADCI/wj2f1If1AgQ/s1600-h/P112020920.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="My couch in KL!" border="0" alt="My couch in KL!" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxfepxHnI/AAAAAAAADCM/s1Sc2yNSKBg/P1120209_thumb18.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxgn_I67I/AAAAAAAADCQ/YJuatvFntgk/s1600-h/P10900533.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="View of Kuala Lumpur from my couch " border="0" alt="View of Kuala Lumpur from my couch " src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxhfOI2nI/AAAAAAAADCU/38vqWaESb9c/P1090053_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxic_76wI/AAAAAAAADCY/qhS5e6Rqi6g/s1600-h/P11202073.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Sunset from my couch" border="0" alt="Sunset from my couch" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxiyADJpI/AAAAAAAADCc/nMXGHw21HbM/P1120207_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p>What’s even luckier is that the girl whose place I crashed at turned out to be my idea of the perfect woman, and amazingly enough the feeling was mutual. Things worked out and here we are. Say hello and welcome to Angelina :)</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxkFeHd7I/AAAAAAAADCg/vWN3RX5glOc/s1600-h/P11304473.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1130447" border="0" alt="P1130447" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxlfskv_I/AAAAAAAADCk/6zpyuvlpZpc/P1130447_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxmCCqwcI/AAAAAAAADCo/mbG_b1cibfw/s1600-h/P11004233.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1100423" border="0" alt="P1100423" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxmy2vvvI/AAAAAAAADCs/EbmEW1ly38c/P1100423_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxntipP_I/AAAAAAAADCw/mbB4Qq7N_zw/s1600-h/P11004293.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1100429" border="0" alt="P1100429" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxoGNm4LI/AAAAAAAADC0/5OXplqCnFyc/P1100429_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxpBHr1UI/AAAAAAAADC4/7vtXHSHhg6Q/s1600-h/P11004013.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1100401" border="0" alt="P1100401" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxpvKwpTI/AAAAAAAADC8/jSqeIqROfXM/P1100401_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p>After a week at Angelina’s I moved into my own very flash pad, courtesy Sophie’s lovely family, who very kindly put me up for the rest of the month. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxqiROafI/AAAAAAAADDA/iRhdN_HB1mA/s1600-h/P10900313.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Lunch with the lovely Harrith-Kassims on arriving in KL" border="0" alt="Lunch with the lovely Harrith-Kassims on arriving in KL" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxrzQjbuI/AAAAAAAADDE/5EvUt7C7M6Q/P1090031_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>Kuala Lumpur was not what I expected. For some reason I just sort of assumed it would be more like a ‘true’ Asian city. Like Bangkok for example. However the reality is quite different. Kuala Lumpur is infrastructurally like Singapore but culturally more lively. The roads are superb and the condos mind-boggling. The city is huge and spread out but only has a population of 2m. In fact Malaysia as a whole has a population of only 28m. </p> <p>Angelina’s sister Debra took me around the city for a sight-seeing photo-shoot, conveniently squeezing all the sight-seeing and building watching I was going to do into one day.</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxss3rAJI/AAAAAAAADDI/TjaaXXY5xIQ/s1600-h/P10900705.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Taking photos with Debra and Tim" border="0" alt="Taking photos with Debra and Tim" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxtcqd8RI/AAAAAAAADDM/EdjhQKcQrz0/P1090070_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" width="490" height="368" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxuQL1qPI/AAAAAAAADDQ/k7dT96Jqagc/s1600-h/P10900782.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Merdeka Square" border="0" alt="Merdeka Square" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxvP7ZfSI/AAAAAAAADDU/8rgdKoFMAwY/P1090078_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxwM8sTMI/AAAAAAAADDY/IdQpn1QWeC4/s1600-h/P10900792.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The Sultan Abdul Samad Building" border="0" alt="The Sultan Abdul Samad Building" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxw4rtgOI/AAAAAAAADDc/HpuwcEycfVo/P1090079_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxx9o2VrI/AAAAAAAADDg/3D7HQHwFYZA/s1600-h/P10900912.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="McDonalds, Burger King and 7/11 all in the same shot!" border="0" alt="McDonalds, Burger King and 7/11 all in the same shot!" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxy9ZFhyI/AAAAAAAADDk/yQcPI6UC8xo/P1090091_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzxz-aiTdI/AAAAAAAADDo/CLfbl8cWbgc/s1600-h/P10900932.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cool old buildings downtown" border="0" alt="Cool old buildings downtown" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx0WtA4fI/AAAAAAAADDs/FcmS5qrsA50/P1090093_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx12a05gI/AAAAAAAADDw/O8VCxuW0qRg/s1600-h/P10902622.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Streets opposite the Central Market" border="0" alt="Streets opposite the Central Market" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx2m0JJJI/AAAAAAAADD0/ltDjIHEJblg/P1090262_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx3sYEa0I/AAAAAAAADD4/Hz9N_xLEtXI/s1600-h/P10900952.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Street signs in Kuala Lumpur" border="0" alt="Street signs in Kuala Lumpur" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx4YJLkVI/AAAAAAAADD8/ytroqFdfWdA/P1090095_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>KL is full of red-roofed beige condos and fantastic mosques, spread out along flyovers and huge roads with mountain ranges in the background. The Genting Highlands resort floats high in the air on dark clear nights - the cluster of lights twinkling like magic at the top of a mountain that disappears in the dark. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx5XBrBiI/AAAAAAAADEA/xoQjgANljVc/s1600-h/P11304822.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="View from outside Solaris" border="0" alt="View from outside Solaris" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx6MZgpYI/AAAAAAAADEE/baZ81Ct0SC4/P1130482_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx7HA3i9I/AAAAAAAADEI/nsu6Ko14n1g/s1600-h/P11304892.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Genting Highlands" border="0" alt="Genting Highlands" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx79LAWUI/AAAAAAAADEM/2Re5n8Y4ULs/P1130489_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> </p> <p>The ultra-famous Petronas Towers too, once the tallest in the world, now disappear in a skyline of high rises, except at night when their lights ensure they stand out like the defining monuments that they are.</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx9I-3HqI/AAAAAAAADEQ/6cKmkNRGEcg/s1600-h/P11304593.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="KL Skyline and Twin Towers" border="0" alt="KL Skyline and Twin Towers" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx92A6wbI/AAAAAAAADEU/FsAAn09JyQA/P1130459_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>It is notoriously difficult to get a decent shot of them close up as they are built on top of the KLCC mall and surrounded by other buildings. </p> <p></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx-mqDbAI/AAAAAAAADEY/FIXR_yd1WsQ/s1600-h/P10901153.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Petronas &#39;Twin&#39; Towers" border="0" alt="Petronas &#39;Twin&#39; Towers" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzx_WUXLPI/AAAAAAAADEc/gNFKllm-_TY/P1090115_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyAcZokUI/AAAAAAAADEg/Xb6uuNgcoqA/s1600-h/P10901184.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bridge connecting the twin towers in KL" border="0" alt="Bridge connecting the twin towers in KL" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyBFDlo_I/AAAAAAAADEk/HasDzIKka80/P1090118_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p>The mall underneath is super fancy, like all others in Kuala Lumpur, reflecting the general wealth of the city and country, much of which comes from Palm Oil. There are no slums or beggars in KL, and any poverty that exists is hidden amidst the luxury or pushed out into rural towns. For the most part, KL is a city for shopping, ranging from expensive labels to cheap hawker centres.</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyCDSLfyI/AAAAAAAADEo/pmy39teJMO8/s1600-h/P10901297.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="KLCC mall" border="0" alt="KLCC mall" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyDHzkFYI/AAAAAAAADEs/3wh_hyFoxCY/P1090129_thumb9.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="352" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyEbF188I/AAAAAAAADEw/QCOzUCSQ2A4/s1600-h/P11304123.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1130412" border="0" alt="P1130412" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyFDIiUjI/AAAAAAAADE0/0Dk33s-MBxc/P1130412_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyGTegFKI/AAAAAAAADE4/eiNRrjytCG0/s1600-h/P11304213.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1130421" border="0" alt="P1130421" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyHBoareI/AAAAAAAADE8/a8T31j_l1pk/P1130421_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="245" height="184" /></a></p> <p>Cinemas in KL make British ones pale in comparison, and at RM11 they only cost £2. Interestingly though salted popcorn isn’t that popular. Sweet caramel popcorn is the flavour of the day. In fact some cinemas like the one in KLCC don’t keep salty popcorn at all. </p> <p>My favourite thing about Malaysia however is the way Bahasa Malayu deals with English words that are now absorbed into the language. Bus is ‘bas’, complex is ‘kompleks’ and taxi is ‘teksi’. Think how much easier English phonetics would be if all words were spelt like this! </p> <p>My other favourite thing is the food. A mix of Malay and South Indian cuisines on offer. My first visit to Malaysia many years ago didn’t endear me to the food, but this time I realised what I’d missed. From nasi lemak, nasi goreng and laksa, to roti canai, satay chicken and awesome seafood. I still wake up dreaming of chicken rice!</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyINn0zLI/AAAAAAAADFA/2hBGiatyaoo/s1600-h/P11304252.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Roti canai and Te Ice" border="0" alt="Roti canai and Te Ice" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyI2yQiSI/AAAAAAAADFE/rLMCAPFaBfA/P1130425_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyJpapfVI/AAAAAAAADFI/wvsHCLnsD3o/s1600-h/P11304312.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Chicken satay" border="0" alt="Chicken satay" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyKZc-eyI/AAAAAAAADFM/zOisiGOQJnY/P1130431_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyL8gv11I/AAAAAAAADFQ/pRWm0pZgriU/s1600-h/P11004102.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Full roast lamb on a spit" border="0" alt="Full roast lamb on a spit" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyMqileKI/AAAAAAAADFU/jmcmeOLqzDw/P1100410_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyNosaEdI/AAAAAAAADFY/hCGGDyVTYSU/s1600-h/P11305082.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Chicken rice and sweet jasmine green tea!!" border="0" alt="Chicken rice and sweet jasmine green tea!!" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyOff5LbI/AAAAAAAADFc/KVnK3r2sT4g/P1130508_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyPkNRmWI/AAAAAAAADFg/vjWR7Xa2DdA/s1600-h/P10903512.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Check out the deep fried chicken wings" border="0" alt="Check out the deep fried chicken wings" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyQZm9iYI/AAAAAAAADFk/7-IIDVZsqV8/P1090351_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyRcOfUAI/AAAAAAAADFo/arbBWkz0Xic/s1600-h/P10902942.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Fried Gurame" border="0" alt="Fried Gurame" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzySHE4wLI/AAAAAAAADFs/Ww7PClLyLsc/P1090294_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyTP2TueI/AAAAAAAADFw/f7euj-3XNHM/s1600-h/P10901342.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Nasi Lemak" border="0" alt="Nasi Lemak" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyTgv5Z5I/AAAAAAAADF0/-L0jwLPAaeo/P1090134_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyUr4wQbI/AAAAAAAADF4/z3BT9EG5PIc/s1600-h/P10901362.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bee hun" border="0" alt="Bee hun" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyVTPkoMI/AAAAAAAADF8/NbxUnCw43mM/P1090136_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyWKe-lvI/AAAAAAAADGA/XvDlxBToia4/s1600-h/P10902392.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Laksa" border="0" alt="Laksa" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyW58l_AI/AAAAAAAADGE/w1GVvxGNHx4/P1090239_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyX2bSVPI/AAAAAAAADGI/doUKblfUCCc/s1600-h/P10901462.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Hyderabadi style " border="0" alt="Hyderabadi style " src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyYhu9SyI/AAAAAAAADGM/LR4edLIlTb8/P1090146_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>… and in between great Asian cuisine, there’s also superb western food too. I ate one of the best cheap gourmet burgers ever at Las Vacas and developed a serious fondness for what I now think is the greatest ice-cream ever – Cotton Candy from Baskin Robbins. Tastes like candy floss and bubblegum!</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyZvoUT8I/AAAAAAAADGQ/3puPm_ExGys/s1600-h/P11304462.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Greatest burger ever at Las Vacas " border="0" alt="Greatest burger ever at Las Vacas " src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyaCgTXLI/AAAAAAAADGU/zEAc3SPR0OM/P1130446_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzybdD2ILI/AAAAAAAADGY/LqOd81CKdYU/s1600-h/P11304562.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cotton candy ice-cream at Baskin Robbins" border="0" alt="Cotton candy ice-cream at Baskin Robbins" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyb5bE3zI/AAAAAAAADGc/56cnfaAttVc/P1130456_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>The greatest win though was being introduced to Big Apple Donuts. Now I’m not really much of a donut fan, but these are “Sushi” donuts. They’re shaped like sushi, with toppings to make them look like sushi. Sweet and light and delicious. The greatest ever. Somebody needs to start a franchise in London!!</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzycxyGWzI/AAAAAAAADGg/EwgFwWyjtYk/s1600-h/P10903233.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Sushi Donuts from Big Apple Donuts" border="0" alt="Sushi Donuts from Big Apple Donuts" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyd7DqokI/AAAAAAAADGk/XgvwRZmSN7g/P1090323_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>The cheapest places to eat are Mamak restaurants. Muslim Indians are called Mamaks in Malaysia, and they’re typically from South India. Food is great and ridiculously cheap. You’d be unlucky if your meal cost you more than a pound. Proper restaurants on the other other hand are a lot more expensive but still good. The local chains are Pappa Rich and Old Town White Coffee, and other favourites are Nirvana, Alexis and Delicious.</p> <p></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyev21qtI/AAAAAAAADGo/EdO4faDzSs8/s1600-h/P10901313.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Old Town White Coffee" border="0" alt="Old Town White Coffee" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyfb1Y3sI/AAAAAAAADGs/cNTbaTJHYCs/P1090131_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzygUaSwNI/AAAAAAAADGw/bNsPf6XmiW8/s1600-h/P10901383.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pappa Rich" border="0" alt="Pappa Rich" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyhMyL9gI/AAAAAAAADG4/yjeAKy2h-fA/P1090138_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyhzKcAVI/AAAAAAAADG8/yvDu5ClR66s/s1600-h/P10902673.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Chicken rice stall" border="0" alt="Chicken rice stall" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyirtWzxI/AAAAAAAADHA/o3RExrQIHuI/P1090267_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyjt0uhOI/AAAAAAAADHE/-lXk3UOY16w/s1600-h/P11305553.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Seafood restaurant in the countryside" border="0" alt="Seafood restaurant in the countryside" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzykW_UkdI/AAAAAAAADHI/7_FS7bezujU/P1130555_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzylWpbXqI/AAAAAAAADHM/9U8lruZGZIY/s1600-h/P10900515.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Mamak restaurant" border="0" alt="Mamak restaurant" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzymvNxQgI/AAAAAAAADHQ/E_g-gG33u7k/P1090051_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyngtZKtI/AAAAAAAADHU/w0pUvHtqgHc/s1600-h/P10903664.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The most famous Brother John burger stall" border="0" alt="The most famous Brother John burger stall" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyoHSytUI/AAAAAAAADHY/ckQHIiOnih8/P1090366_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzypQhpaRI/AAAAAAAADHc/Vy8olXZrXWw/s1600-h/P10903673.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Making a Ramly burger. KL&#39;s equivalent of the late night Kebab." border="0" alt="Making a Ramly burger. KL&#39;s equivalent of the late night Kebab." src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyqcgARtI/AAAAAAAADHg/RkwDnPf1pV0/P1090367_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p>Nightlife in KL is cool, and ranges from pubs, to bars and restaurants. For the most part fun times and socialising involved food, as you can tell from the above pictures, but it was great to make new friends and catch up with old ones like my university classmate Azuan.</p> <p></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyrVz9q1I/AAAAAAAADHk/uye-qHxmNLY/s1600-h/P10902963.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Azuan, Nora and Yasser" border="0" alt="Azuan, Nora and Yasser" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyr5XfxFI/AAAAAAAADHo/beqzshFIIdw/P1090296_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzysmMo2eI/AAAAAAAADHs/oy8xvrYT8vI/s1600-h/P10903093.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="&quot;Pint&quot;" border="0" alt="&quot;Pint&quot;" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzytaqRlQI/AAAAAAAADHw/-LV8Dmx3RH4/P1090309_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyuW8Cm5I/AAAAAAAADH0/cmD9Es0LArM/s1600-h/P10902423.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cendol with Jonson Chong" border="0" alt="Cendol with Jonson Chong" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyvE9J9JI/AAAAAAAADH4/tlGMW-w0K2U/P1090242_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzywC-S-wI/AAAAAAAADH8/ADMt9FvkC-c/s1600-h/P10903083.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pasta with Khailee and the Youth Says team" border="0" alt="Pasta with Khailee and the Youth Says team" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzywxI5ynI/AAAAAAAADIA/o5crHGSO9zQ/P1090308_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyyAkVexI/AAAAAAAADIE/cYnINmTFlcU/s1600-h/P10904627.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Drinks with Seh Lih" border="0" alt="Drinks with Seh Lih" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyyq5fv6I/AAAAAAAADII/qXajhivrcWw/P1090462_thumb5.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzyzz3l5NI/AAAAAAAADIM/oeOBAgZ2oD4/s1600-h/P11304374.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="With Bernie in a dead ma" border="0" alt="With Bernie in a dead ma" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy0fv5M3I/AAAAAAAADIQ/Q1LLP7OkH1Y/P1130437_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy1V0bPEI/AAAAAAAADIU/ewtidRmpC34/s1600-h/P10903653.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dinner and drinks with everyone from EPIC" border="0" alt="Dinner and drinks with everyone from EPIC" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy2B2CLCI/AAAAAAAADIY/Nqg1Y8Qtd-w/P1090365_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy3DBms2I/AAAAAAAADIc/wxDc01WSebA/s1600-h/P10904683.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Mamak food with Asia" border="0" alt="Mamak food with Asia" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy339U2QI/AAAAAAAADIg/I_q51lQr7Es/P1090468_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy4vhpNhI/AAAAAAAADIk/9UKj8-__Lhs/s1600-h/P11008643.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Some kind of sweet roti with Angelina" border="0" alt="Some kind of sweet roti with Angelina" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy5CrnJsI/AAAAAAAADIo/kwH6blB1s5E/P1100864_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy6VJfCSI/AAAAAAAADIs/7V5QJmMgOkg/s1600-h/P10904393.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Ramadhan special with Angelina and Deb" border="0" alt="Ramadhan special with Angelina and Deb" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy7MQERvI/AAAAAAAADIw/b83SUmGo0QI/P1090439_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy8PcPGWI/AAAAAAAADI0/pDgF6fesCWA/s1600-h/P11304642.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Hyderabadi food with Angelina and Asia" border="0" alt="Hyderabadi food with Angelina and Asia" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy8uyihEI/AAAAAAAADI4/7gqrKieWoY0/P1130464_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy9WDUljI/AAAAAAAADI8/DFr47vW8R0U/s1600-h/P10904932.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Drinks with Jonson at Debs birthday" border="0" alt="Drinks with Jonson at Debs birthday" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy-C_yMKI/AAAAAAAADJA/PbxN0zcrF4s/P1090493_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>Finally I can’t move on without a mention of the greatest live band ever. Retro 9. Three Indian guys playing classic tunes in a great bar called Cavells, and sounding exactly like or better than the originals. Everything from The Doors to The Eagles. They’ve disbanded now. Gutted.</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzy_IwpihI/AAAAAAAADJE/FdQB_rS78tY/s1600-h/P10903123.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Retro 9 at Cavells" border="0" alt="Retro 9 at Cavells" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzANPyFpI/AAAAAAAADJI/L4wa9DhfAyg/P1090312_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a>&#160; </p> <p>Going in and out of KL over the past four months meant that I was present for lots of cultural events. From Ramadhan and the amazing evening markets, to the Hungry Ghost Festival and Lion Dances, which I thought only happened in old Jackie Chan films!</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzA1-8OKI/AAAAAAAADJM/ljLCNkj2qiA/s1600-h/P10902213.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Ramadhan market" border="0" alt="Ramadhan market" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzBmDgThI/AAAAAAAADJU/pnQAmWC7cPM/P1090221_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzC4DWw3I/AAAAAAAADJY/Ij1v0dhZOOI/s1600-h/P10902224.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Stingray" border="0" alt="Stingray" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzDpKmvOI/AAAAAAAADJc/QWqqCdAtUtQ/P1090222_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="308" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzEz_0BTI/AAAAAAAADJg/6JD4aDpnHV4/s1600-h/P10902244.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Drinks in plastic bags. You stick a straw in and drink straight from the bag" border="0" alt="Drinks in plastic bags. You stick a straw in and drink straight from the bag" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzFq2z7FI/AAAAAAAADJk/Pn6IbUFL5VA/P1090224_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="308" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzHK16aPI/AAAAAAAADJo/yE0dXoEi07o/s1600-h/P10902253.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1090225" border="0" alt="P1090225" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzH5WwxXI/AAAAAAAADJs/fnLoen1qkmM/P1090225_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzJfAdO0I/AAAAAAAADJw/VxsjDgrjyfI/s1600-h/P10902273.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Chicken" border="0" alt="Chicken" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzKTFD7hI/AAAAAAAADJ0/Z_NHaBnefLw/P1090227_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzLuiLHrI/AAAAAAAADJ4/pMsWbd41grA/s1600-h/P10902283.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Satay" border="0" alt="Satay" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzMXcg75I/AAAAAAAADJ8/SWeU6ymZIBM/P1090228_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a></p> <p>Just before I left Malaysia, Angelina took me to see Fireflies at the Firefly Park in Kuala Selangor. It is a protected area kept specially for vast populations of fireflies. The park opens at dusk and at 8pm small boats take you down the river in complete darkness with millions of fireflies like Christmas lights twinkling in unison on along the river banks.</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzNKGoYFI/AAAAAAAADKA/roVqiGbPsaQ/s1600-h/P11305304.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1130530" border="0" alt="P1130530" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzN9ExSwI/AAAAAAAADKE/yGquYej5gDs/P1130530_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzOkqRB1I/AAAAAAAADKI/QQjVE_4itCo/s1600-h/P11305373.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1130537" border="0" alt="P1130537" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzPVgaoYI/AAAAAAAADKM/x0fZSxHtyF4/P1130537_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a></p> <p>And so we continue on happily. Wish us luck!</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzQeOjNBI/AAAAAAAADKQ/nd3djQodvz4/s1600-h/P11303993.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jokes with Angelina in a mall somewhere in KL" border="0" alt="Jokes with Angelina in a mall somewhere in KL" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSzzRRaBNjI/AAAAAAAADKU/qpTtxbKpk24/P1130399_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/YN5-XXjXaiY" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/01/adventures-in-malaysia.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-37090093400388348992011-01-11T01:17:00.001+02:002011-11-14T13:46:23.240+02:00Globosocial Adventures in The Philippines<p>I decided to go to the Philippines purely by chance. It wasn’t on my list of places to go simply because I’d never really thought about it. However, I was trying to find a place to take a break and my extended brother in law Jensen suggested I crash at his beach shack in Cebu. Over-thinking is not my way of life; if opportunity knocks, it’s best you take it. It sounded good and was hassle free, so I went with it. Bought my ticket and flew into Cebu for a few weeks of rest and relaxation. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPsnwC8DI/AAAAAAAAC-8/eLREqVv_bPw/s1600-h/P1000248%5B3%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jensen Go Chow" border="0" alt="Jensen Go Chow" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPtVVr62I/AAAAAAAAC_A/nMyVLUHiyGs/P1000248_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a> </p> <p>My trips are usually very intense because I’m constantly dealing with new everything. From place to food to people to context. Each challenge I help address has to be faced in a bespoke way if the advice or support is ever going to be practically useful. It’s non-stop focus and I tend to burn out every three months or so.&#160; My ability to process information and articulate things takes a palpable dive. I can literally feel it. Like Robocop losing his charge. If I don’t wind down properly and recharge, the next leg becomes that much harder. The original plan was 6 weeks out after every major region, but actually I got about 3 weeks of rest this time. Ah well. They were a great three weeks though :)</p> <p>I arrived on three hour hop from Singapore, followed by a short cab ride to the Kawayan Marine resort where Jensen rents his shack, and began a few weeks of doing nothing more than sleep, eat, swim, scuba dive and watch old Kung-Fu films. No frills or luxuries. Just all the basic comforts you could want – like one of those genius rackets for defeating mossies. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPujCCi6I/AAAAAAAAC_E/kmwo8HBDyo8/s1600-h/P10000323.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kawayan Marine, Mactan" border="0" alt="Kawayan Marine, Mactan" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPvgqGgKI/AAAAAAAAC_I/zi30orlxGKs/P1000032_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPwjyFv8I/AAAAAAAAC_M/CxWVUIhLYjY/s1600-h/P10000413.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Main drive heading into the sea" border="0" alt="Main drive heading into the sea" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPxUS2m7I/AAAAAAAAC_Q/QAOZYt7Tohg/P1000041_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TS-lv1uzveI/AAAAAAAADME/npPo1408Ajw/s1600-h/P1000043%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The living room" border="0" alt="The living room" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuPzrSwu0I/AAAAAAAADMI/EC3Dh__8Ito/P1000043_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="172" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP06oe1yI/AAAAAAAADMQ/xwXZXvSe1fw/s1600-h/P1000048%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The bedroom" border="0" alt="The bedroom" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP1r-7uPI/AAAAAAAADMU/r3N-xHXu4zY/P1000048_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="307" height="230" /></a>&#160;</p> <p>Mactan transport is all about pimped out Jeepneys, and motorbikes with modified sidecars that fit four or five people. I usually took the Jeepneys which I rode from the resort to the main town every day for meals in or near the local malls. </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP22fDCbI/AAAAAAAAC_k/oT0xWnZZKJQ/s1600-h/P10005171.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jeepneys near Marina Mall" border="0" alt="Jeepneys near Marina Mall" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP3jwdEKI/AAAAAAAAC_o/LEeIAYtF-EM/P1000517_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP4qaz-TI/AAAAAAAAC_s/EFeu5plZ_oc/s1600-h/P10005181.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Front spoiler on yellow Jeepney" border="0" alt="Front spoiler on yellow Jeepney" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP5XH1XLI/AAAAAAAAC_w/IfCnwlhZGZc/P1000518_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> </p> <p>The closest mall was the Marina Mall, but for bigger and fancier ones you have to get closer to Cebu City which is about half an hour away from Mactan. Gaisanos is on the way, but in the City you have the much fancier SM and Ayala malls with all the glass and bright lights we’ve come to know and love/hate in the West. </p> <p>Filipino food is an interesting one. Everyone (all westerners) I met before I left assured me that Filipino food is terrible, and I found quite the opposite. I loved it. From the street barbeques to big legs of chicken to junk food at ChowKing, Julies and Mang Inasal. I tucked into Barbeque chicken with rice dipped in calamansi, chillies and soy; Chicharon; Pochero; Kinilaw; and the famous Lechon. </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP6WhB34I/AAAAAAAAC_0/50DSPXl4b6c/s1600-h/DSCF61184.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Barbeque pork and rice in street stalls. Awesome. Sweet and spicy." border="0" alt="Barbeque pork and rice in street stalls. Awesome. Sweet and spicy." src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP7btZcgI/AAAAAAAAC_4/lBE5BxpKQ_U/DSCF6118_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP88HSNJI/AAAAAAAAC_8/Fm498-B6_7E/s1600-h/P10004692.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kinilaw " border="0" alt="Kinilaw " src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP9w32zQI/AAAAAAAADAA/mIx6hw1nGeI/P1000469_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP-2n4d6I/AAAAAAAADAE/qAnt0YJ-_Hs/s1600-h/P10004982.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pochero and calamansi dip" border="0" alt="Pochero and calamansi dip" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuP_1rYOhI/AAAAAAAADAI/v-NFMgMmj-4/P1000498_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQBPI5GlI/AAAAAAAADAM/TNLNZQVBjDA/s1600-h/P10000524.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Home cooked food with Jensen and Connie in Malabuyoc" border="0" alt="Home cooked food with Jensen and Connie in Malabuyoc" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQBxJ-H7I/AAAAAAAADAQ/J6FT8TJznsE/P1000052_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a> </p> <p>While at the Resort I helped Connie figure out how to increase the profitability of the place, which was struggling; largely due the fact that it was trying to be everything to everyone and losing any clear identity in the process.</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQCxQ5K0I/AAAAAAAADAU/bxLRUe3Y0-w/s1600-h/P10002985.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Restructuring hostel services" border="0" alt="Restructuring hostel services" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQDxoGQsI/AAAAAAAADAY/4rJ332ypXxQ/P1000298_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a> </p> <p>Here’s the <a href="http://www.kawayanmarine.com" target="_blank">website</a> we put together to help get them going. Hopefully it’s helping!</p> <p>In return Connie very kindly took me to visit her other resort in a town called Malabuyoc about 4 hours away on the west coast. It is amazing. Check the pics <a href="http://www.kawayanmarine.com" target="_blank">here</a>. It’s so peaceful and the water is clear and warm like you can’t believe. We went scuba diving and dolphin watching and drank Tuba on the walkway under the stars. Buy a ticket and go visit. Now!!! </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQFGfJedI/AAAAAAAADAc/HZmPVvImQjg/s1600-h/P10001973.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kawayan Marine Resort in Malabuyoc" border="0" alt="Kawayan Marine Resort in Malabuyoc" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQF_kHK6I/AAAAAAAADAg/stY718Kr_AE/P1000197_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQGxQU-YI/AAAAAAAADAk/ZNrXRM5wQjw/s1600-h/P10001062.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jumping off the walkway into the sea at high tide. At low tide this would be pretty dangerous!" border="0" alt="Jumping off the walkway into the sea at high tide. At low tide this would be pretty dangerous!" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQHktxZ4I/AAAAAAAADAo/7rjwTUKWWZg/P1000106_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQIdaKO1I/AAAAAAAADAs/bEhsx-Yy3dE/s1600-h/P10002042.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="On the prow of a boat designed for dolphin watching. " border="0" alt="On the prow of a boat designed for dolphin watching. " src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQJSegODI/AAAAAAAADAw/h8djThAa-rs/P1000204_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQKCIheII/AAAAAAAADA0/Zn6jIlmBhRI/s1600-h/P10002152.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dolphins right under my feet" border="0" alt="Dolphins right under my feet" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQLAyz8AI/AAAAAAAADA4/pY7-JgPSX28/P1000215_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>On returning to Mactan I made a little trip across the water to an island called Olango which has a bird sanctuary. Didn’t see too many birds but the place was unbelievably peaceful. No one there at all. Apparently you can camp out there overnight. Something I’d like to do some day.</p> <p>From the peaceful to the social. I went out a couple of nights with Jensen and friends into Cebu City and checked out the local clubs. Not the fancy ones that look like any club anywhere, but where the locals and students go like Pump Julies and KTV places. The Filipinos love love LOVE Karaoke, and you can’t help but get into the swing of it yourself.&#160; </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQMr9ZkHI/AAAAAAAADMg/KwSBJiXBJvQ/s1600-h/P1000473%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1000473" border="0" alt="P1000473" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQNcvVyHI/AAAAAAAADMk/MsKRaVxBj_Y/P1000473_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="305" height="230" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuQOKZ_L_I/AAAAAAAADMs/QxFwIPVkgw8/s1600-h/P1000481%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1000481" border="0" alt="P1000481" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTP9ozDEI/AAAAAAAADM0/gTWy5OHo3LI/P1000481_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="173" height="230" /></a></p> <p>Jensen and I also got invited to a party at his uncle’s place. Apparently it is standard practice to have a full roast pig at Filipino events, but I was still pretty impressed. Serious food. </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTRCksWUI/AAAAAAAADBM/Rm82yY7IMjo/s1600-h/P1000536%5B6%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Saying Grace before tucking in to a full roast pig" border="0" alt="Saying Grace before tucking in to a full roast pig" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTSQPy63I/AAAAAAAADBQ/egyQTD8AqhM/P1000536_thumb%5B5%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="375" /></a></p> <p>Everywhere you go kids and young guys are playing Basketball. Even at night. On broken courts, with no lights. Basketball here is like football everywhere else. A relic I guess of the American presence during World War II. </p> <p>Bigger than everything else though is Cock Fighting. This is what it’s all about. Even Manny Pacquiao is a regular, betting millions of Pesos on a single bout. The cock fight itself is often over in minutes; the long blade strapped to their legs makes it deadly and quick. There can be 60 or 70 fights in a night, in an arena shaped exactly like a boxing ring. On my way back through Manila my hosts were heading to a fight so I went with the flow. Watching animals kill each other is not my idea of fun, but the human interaction around it was fascinating to witness. </p> <p>It is the only time I’ve ever seen large scale betting without an organised middle man. It’s all one to one, trust based betting. Odds are called and while the birds warm up, the crowd goes into a frenzy. People shouting for others to place bets with; all going silent when the bell rings. And when the fight is over a couple of minutes later, all you see is small bundles of folded up cash being thrown across the arena from losers to winners. On scouts honour. It is chaotic and impressive and it all works. I guess if you got caught doing the dirty, there’s an arena full of activated testosterone to ensure you don’t do it again.</p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTTflx9JI/AAAAAAAADBU/GojRddHCSpw/s1600-h/P1000170%5B2%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kids playing basketball on the West Coast of Cebu" border="0" alt="Kids playing basketball on the West Coast of Cebu" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTUeOormI/AAAAAAAADBY/KVv_PcGKvTg/P1000170_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a>&#160;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTV7HqjEI/AAAAAAAADBc/3n0ZJ9ABvLE/s1600-h/P1000134%5B2%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Fighting Cock being reared and trained in its coop" border="0" alt="Fighting Cock being reared and trained in its coop" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTWjWDiAI/AAAAAAAADBg/bC_BjnJpAZg/P1000134_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="240" height="180" /></a></p> <p>Talking of sports, Jensen is a Capoeira teacher so I attended the grading ceremony held at the fancy Ayala mall as an event in the main courtyard. Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art that is practised to the beat of drums and rhythm vocals. It is acrobatic and fluid and fantastic to watch. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTXhUz5eI/AAAAAAAADBk/yalSwPoC_8Q/s1600-h/P10004323.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Capoeira in the Philippines" border="0" alt="Capoeira in the Philippines" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTYiqZk9I/AAAAAAAADBo/63QtcDn11Gg/P1000432_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="380" /></a></p> <p>Towards the end of my stay in Cebu, as always, I got involved with social development. This time through the Rotary Club of Cebu, who fund and support a number of non-profits in the area. </p> <ul> <li><a href="http://josefahospitaller.com/index.php?option=com_contact&amp;view=contact&amp;id=3%3Amaria-josefa-recio-therapeutic-center&amp;catid=12%3Acontacts&amp;Itemid=154" target="_blank">Maria Josefa Recio Mental Health Therapeutic Centre</a> <br />Mental health is not recognised in the Philippines, which means there is no state funding or medical care dedicated to mental illness. There are no clinical psychologists either and hence a major shortage of skills to care for patients. The foundation used to receive money from the Church in Italy, but due to global recession this funding had been arbitrarily cut. We discussed fundraising for patient care, before recognising that in reality what was first needed was funding to build a movement raising awareness and national recognition of mental illness. We looked at designing movements and building platforms for raising money in the future. Unfortunately the big bosses in Italy weren’t having it and so the Foundation struggles to survive. <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.swcfi.org/" target="_blank">Soil and Water Conservation Foundation</a> <br />I spent some time with Bill Granert and his wife and team who have been trying to save watersheds and have been involved in a wide range of ecological development in the Philippines over the past 20 years. As ever the primary challenge lay in raising funds to support their fieldwork and future projects. In actuality we established that the best value that SWCF could add at this stage of organisational maturity was to capture and disseminate the knowledge and techniques developed over so many years. Evolving into an advisory rather than delivery entity would not only reduce the size of funds that need to be raised, but also massively increase the scale of impact they could have.&#160;&#160; <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTZiVDmAI/AAAAAAAADBs/l4AqHV8Y1_s/s1600-h/P1000514%5B7%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bill and Aida Granert from SWCF" border="0" alt="Bill and Aida Granert from SWCF" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTah_kBpI/AAAAAAAADBw/M8h0ewQ6F_w/P1000514_thumb%5B7%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> <br /></li> <li><a href="http://www.thelordwhocares.org/" target="_blank">Project Mercy School</a> <br />In low income environments in developing countries, teenagers drop out of school for a wide range of complex reasons, but educational systems are typically unable to deal with individuals that fall outside normalised conditions. Addressing the needs of young people in these circumstances requires holistic solutions, that cover 8 key elements <br /> <br />1. Emotional resilience and adaptiveness <br />2. Family engagement and support <br />3. Life-oriented learning and curriculums <br />4. Work and life preparation <br />5. Nutrition – at least one square meal <br />6. Basic healthcare <br />7. Extra-curricular activities <br />8. Alumni programmes &amp; After-care <br /> <br />The school was set up and is run by Bayon Suico who used to be a teacher in the top private school in Cebu, and she was an absolute inspiration. We looked at systematising the model they use with some improvements for long term care, addressed the challenge of scale, and laid out a development roadmap that will one day ensure that the model she is proving will become part of the state system. <br /> <br /><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTblNZ9WI/AAAAAAAADB4/ylSdMqBP_c8/s1600-h/P1000532%5B3%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bayon Suico with the scaling model for her school" border="0" alt="Bayon Suico with the scaling model for her school" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTcstExNI/AAAAAAAADB8/AGZfdlIvOH0/P1000532_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="450" height="338" /></a> </li> </ul> <p>Finally, just before I left I was asked to give a talk at a Rotary Club annual function, which was pretty fun. It’s really a bunch of old boys enjoying, but they donate money to good causes and support some key programmes so its definitely worthwhile. </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTdc3SIhI/AAAAAAAADCA/lsyNOFGzbF8/s1600-h/P1000554%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1000554" border="0" alt="P1000554" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TSuTffM8fpI/AAAAAAAADCE/70jmNM5qgQc/P1000554_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="504" height="379" /></a></p> <p>On the way out I got caught out at immigration. The visa on arrival is usually 30 days so I didn’t bother to check; too many trips to too many places. In the Philippines however it is 21 days. Turned up just in time to make the month deadline, only to find that I’d overstayed my welcome by a week. Mild panic ensued, and the guy eventually waved me off to the immigration payment counter to pay for the additional visa. I thought he was being magnanimous but found that the queue was massive. Clearly standard procedure here. Any worries that I would never be allowed to return vanished with the general disinterest offered once I’d paid up. Still, I’m now a lot more careful with checking dates! </p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/BBlndd99fag" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2011/01/globosocial-adventures-in-philippines.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-86343642643481663952010-09-24T13:43:00.011+03:002011-11-10T07:34:02.672+02:00Adventures in SingaporeFrom India I headed to Singapore to attend my brother’s wedding and catch up with my family in a much needed break. Of course the break never panned out because weddings are so hectic, but it was beautiful nonetheless. <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJ3NCp-azRI/AAAAAAAAC2g/mwiCOgl7TAI/s1600-h/P1040708%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Parsi Sagan" border="0" height="375" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_Tb3DyFI/AAAAAAAAC2k/QXP797XXuiA/P1040708_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Parsi Sagan" width="500" /></a><br />
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The various ceremonies and events spanned Singapore and an island in Indonesia <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_U8L26bI/AAAAAAAAC2s/vzIqpNWgKlA/s1600-h/P1050582%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Nikoi from the water" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_WLnvImI/AAAAAAAAC20/AU73QIc8xBA/P1050582_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Nikoi from the water" width="240" />&nbsp;</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_XbugUuI/AAAAAAAAC28/aoTvku6q3B0/s1600-h/P1050572%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Beach at Nikoi" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_Yl47d7I/AAAAAAAAC3E/dXI6GP0dwxM/P1050572_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Beach at Nikoi" width="240" /></a><br />
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It was beautifully organised, with so much care and thought put into it. Best wedding I’ve ever been to and not just because it was my brother’s :) ... <br />
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<a name='more'></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=8027552391232887122&amp;postID=8634364264348166395" name="more"></a> <br />
<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_Z9znSRI/AAAAAAAAC3M/iJLYcM1Zjmc/s1600-h/P1050281%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Island Wedding" border="0" height="375" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_buBPmSI/AAAAAAAAC3U/KNViycUD_QU/P1050281_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Island Wedding" width="500" /></a><br />
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For many visitors, Singapore is a boring, clinical city, but I love it. There’s lots of culture, cool bars and awesome food. The only drawback is how expensive beer is. Ranged from 16SGD to 25SGD for a pint, which is just ridiculous. I felt like I was drinking money. The food however is the opposite. Cheap and good. And I mean REALLY good. The government set up proper hawker centres for all the street sellers, so they now have ‘street’ food in clean environments, making it probably the only place in the world you can eat all sorts of tasty stuff without worrying about falling ill. <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_db-FeKI/AAAAAAAAC3c/UP0Jpe_GcyY/s1600-h/P1090010%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1090010" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_eiufqoI/AAAAAAAAC3k/dUJZ6mLTzno/P1090010_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1090010" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_hUzLRfI/AAAAAAAAC3s/o9XSM_oQTJA/s1600-h/P1090013%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1090013" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_i9SaLhI/AAAAAAAAC30/TAWA_sCIIJg/P1090013_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1090013" width="240" /></a><br />
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Singapore has stunning temples, and eye catching skylines that are both well worth experiencing<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_ldroTVI/AAAAAAAAC38/YJ9ElStfZYM/s1600-h/P1050738%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Multi-faith Temple, Singapore" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_mtgFwcI/AAAAAAAAC4E/QORfxooOk24/P1050738_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Multi-faith Temple, Singapore" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_ooUi0WI/AAAAAAAAC4M/k4zArW6b3hU/s1600-h/P1050750%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Clarke Quay" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_p2S5SPI/AAAAAAAAC4U/frdkOlqlnLo/P1050750_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Clarke Quay" width="240" /></a><br />
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On the food front, pretty much nothing beats Chilli Crab. It’s so good that I actually dream of it when I’m away from Singapore. I’ve tried it in other places, but it just doesn’t compare. And of course when Singaporeans eat, they eat properly!<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_rySqk6I/AAAAAAAAC4c/ClS8zdg7iC8/s1600-h/P1050684%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Chilli Crab!" border="0" height="240" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_tFHKgjI/AAAAAAAAC4k/TV1nA10LTK0/P1050684_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Chilli Crab!" width="180" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_v7O8acI/AAAAAAAAC4s/96ZWRpDz6Ss/s1600-h/P1050693%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Crab eggs. Acquired taste!!" border="0" height="240" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_xHZZjlI/AAAAAAAAC40/NW2XCaN8g94/P1050693_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Crab eggs. Acquired taste!!" width="180" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_y3qphPI/AAAAAAAAC48/tCjpYv_keSs/s1600-h/P1050682%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Going all out on with seafood at the East Coast Parkway Seafood Centre" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_0eUsaRI/AAAAAAAAC5E/aFcs3VTlAJY/P1050682_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Going all out on with seafood at the East Coast Parkway Seafood Centre" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_2HTRcmI/AAAAAAAAC5M/34dMzQQilNc/s1600-h/P1050709%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="All over!" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_3SfjZJI/AAAAAAAAC5U/iax-22SfCE0/P1050709_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="All over!" width="240" /></a><br />
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Fruits are abundant in Singapore, especially Durian, which is referred to as the King of Fruit. It actually tastes acceptable but the smell kills you long before it goes near your mouth. That, and the fact that the taste is so strong that it stays with you for hours. You really have to like the stuff to tolerate it. Between the overpowering smell and the mushy texture, I have to admit, it’s not really the fruit for me.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_43nxeJI/AAAAAAAAC5c/KLYOIB3AO38/s1600-h/P1050609%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Durian" border="0" height="240" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_6DfagJI/AAAAAAAAC5k/tHIvN6JqdOo/P1050609_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Durian" width="180" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_7vKsj8I/AAAAAAAAC5s/AkgrTwnMiis/s1600-h/P1050607%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Asian fruit" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_9F-lj-I/AAAAAAAAC50/kPLPVHRzg4M/P1050607_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Asian fruit" width="240" /></a><br />
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Singapore is mostly Chinese, and Chinese food is everywhere. My favourite new food that I hadn’t eaten before is probably Bak Kut Teh, which is simple but tasty. Basically meaty chunks of pork rib in soup. And then of course there’s a huge South Indian population, so awesome Indian food too. Check out the Masala Dosa with all the trappings!<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx_-0QF8sI/AAAAAAAAC58/JF0GiXPZfUs/s1600-h/P1050660%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Bak Kut Teh at Founder Bak Kut Teh Restaurant" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJx__w-WwNI/AAAAAAAAC6E/k4Bne72SrfA/P1050660_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Bak Kut Teh at Founder Bak Kut Teh Restaurant" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyABR94i6I/AAAAAAAAC6M/asqDPpIwnaA/s1600-h/P1050617%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Masala Dosa " border="0" height="240" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyACrDjwqI/AAAAAAAAC6U/viyjhjseI_8/P1050617_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Masala Dosa" width="180" /></a><br />
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I stayed in a HDB with in old friend of mine’s spare room. HDBs are Singapore’s answer to public housing. Efficient, spacious and decent. I also caught up with a bunch of friends in Singapore.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAElT4EnI/AAAAAAAAC6c/VpvF0WZgojk/s1600-h/P1090026%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1090026" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAF-5lN9I/AAAAAAAAC6k/yE94WjdcdDg/P1090026_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1090026" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAHufhk_I/AAAAAAAAC6s/iAcRR_reyhM/s1600-h/P1040958%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1040958" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAI4Fk9qI/AAAAAAAAC60/dEWqPxb9GXo/P1040958_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040958" width="240" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAKyRKwVI/AAAAAAAAC68/UYVQ36VQ6xg/s1600-h/P1040968%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1040968" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyANTj1qtI/AAAAAAAAC7E/qSd84wRIELo/P1040968_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040968" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAPFrR5aI/AAAAAAAAC7M/M9_q0tYYMak/s1600-h/P1050718.jpg"><img alt="P1050718" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAQUpNlrI/AAAAAAAAC7U/j6nTF0LJN58/P1050718_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1050718" width="240" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAR69mxBI/AAAAAAAAC7c/eVMhpPxoSEI/s1600-h/P1050755%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1050755" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyATEy9XMI/AAAAAAAAC7k/P-0JVcyX604/P1050755_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1050755" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAUgLfbpI/AAAAAAAAC7s/xIy8hqP35oQ/s1600-h/P1050747%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1050747" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAVkAcdCI/AAAAAAAAC70/XiFdGatEi0Q/P1050747_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1050747" width="240" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAXW0USKI/AAAAAAAAC78/J7zB8vveCIw/s1600-h/P1040885.jpg"><img alt="P1040885" border="0" height="375" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAYx0uifI/AAAAAAAAC8E/Lfu1CWzhfX8/P1040885_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040885" width="500" /></a> <br />
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Singapore was really meant to be a break. I’m usually pretty burnt out after about three months on the road, because my interaction with projects is pretty intense. But as usual, although I did mostly stick to taking it easy and enjoying life with friends and family, there was still a bit of thinking involved. <br />
I randomly helped out with some commercial and brand strategy for the hotel industry, which was actually quite fascinating… <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAa7hQvQI/AAAAAAAAC8M/dEelHLfkfHo/s1600-h/P1000600%5B6%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000600" border="0" height="324" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAcr-J9SI/AAAAAAAAC8U/osV2Z-N3-CQ/P1000600_thumb%5B5%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000600" width="500" /></a> <br />
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…before catching up with the Lien Centre for Social Innovation, where we discussed impact measurement, and mechanisms for developing social innovation. The trouble with most organisations facilitating these things, is that they are primarily staffed with people who have little real life experience of addressing human issues, or of running organisations that deal with these problems. The result is a combination of copying what everyone else is doing and applying generalisms from the commercial sector. Even when you are able to suggest more effective options, the next limitation is usually inertia. They are already committed to their way of doing things. <br />
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I also did some work with a Social Enterprise called Chatters, which has been set up to address issues related to Singapore’s growing ageing population. We looked at the use of brand to scale their operations, and also to impact social consciousness. Unfortunately this is one time I didn’t take any snapshots, but I was informally offered a job for 2012 to develop some of these things by a board member of the the MCYS. Another option to add to the list :) <br />
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Finally I’d promised another project I worked with that I would visit the North Light school, and it randomly worked out that the same people involved with Chatters were also involved with North Light. So I got a full tour. It’s a fantastic example of what can be done when the problem is small and the funding is large. Singapore has about 900 students who have dropped out of school or failed their PSLE twice, and the government has set up a special school for these students to ensure that the city does not end up with a poverty issue that requires welfare in the long run. Very pro-active as usual.<br />
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They’ve gone all out to address both social and educational development, and the school costs twice as much as a normal one to run. The facilities are superb and the results equally good.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAd6IENkI/AAAAAAAAC8c/JawCvKxYtIM/s1600-h/P1050761%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="North Light School" border="0" height="375" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAfqiA4sI/AAAAAAAAC8k/TC4FwSGdkEA/P1050761_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="North Light School" width="500" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAhjzQkGI/AAAAAAAAC8s/aBy87B9xcQU/s1600-h/P1050757%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="North Light School Principal" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAi7pXUhI/AAAAAAAAC80/qQi_ROYc7xI/P1050757_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="North Light School Principal" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAktN0wnI/AAAAAAAAC88/Btct9VMrL_E/s1600-h/P1050765%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="North Light School Recreation Room " border="0" height="180" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAlsyI7OI/AAAAAAAAC9E/zHY8Y6qlISQ/P1050765_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="North Light School Recreation Room" width="240" /></a><br />
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Aside from covering educational, creative, emotional and nutritional needs they have superb vocational training centres for both hotel and tourism, and store retailing. <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAnWK549I/AAAAAAAAC9M/ZauN8Gfs1No/s1600-h/P1050771%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="North Light School Hotel Training Suite" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAoAb7TaI/AAAAAAAAC9U/YPJHrT_4NHY/P1050771_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="North Light School Hotel Training Suite" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAqALfFPI/AAAAAAAAC9c/7KhQx_k8ZRs/s1600-h/P1050773%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="North Light School Retail Training Centre" border="0" height="180" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyArM8cN3I/AAAAAAAAC9k/YBIHhIP8YVo/P1050773_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="North Light School Retail Training Centre" width="240" /></a> <br />
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Finally they’ve developed a great game to teach their students how to manage their money. This game is available to all and will hopefully go towards raising greater funding for the work that North Light is doing. Check the game out if you see it in stores. <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAtDuAIbI/AAAAAAAAC9s/-b9NzwWGYIk/s1600-h/P1050777%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Mind Your Money" border="0" height="375" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TJyAuzMDaLI/AAAAAAAAC90/dn1JFPyNCdU/P1050777_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Mind Your Money" width="500" /></a><div class="feedflare">
<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=Vf-IbwwAVwE:gYT1Caz0sDg:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=Vf-IbwwAVwE:gYT1Caz0sDg:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=Vf-IbwwAVwE:gYT1Caz0sDg:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a>
</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/Vf-IbwwAVwE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/09/adventures-in-singapore.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-32079958014330687232010-09-07T13:26:00.004+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.673+02:00Adventures in Maharashtra: Rural EnterpriseWhile Delhi was interesting, it was pretty good to get out of the searing heat and get back to Bombay. I’d also been missing some of the Bombay specialties. Paav Bhaji and Sev Puri. Snacks to die for!!<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgN80_ALI/AAAAAAAACts/F6MCSgzNCwI/s1600-h/P10301762.jpg"><img alt="Paav Bhaji" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgO8EeKeI/AAAAAAAACtw/ig_Of2cglzU/P1030176_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Paav Bhaji" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgQGWXnpI/AAAAAAAACt0/4Ft2Y2_5akE/s1600-h/P10301313.jpg"><img alt="Sev Puri" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgROka0eI/AAAAAAAACt4/DA2T_FXatXA/P1030131_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sev Puri" width="244" /></a><br />
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I paid a last visit to the streets where I grew up and the old house that I spent my childhood in.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgSY6Yo7I/AAAAAAAACt8/PhnM995Z_aU/s1600-h/P10405702.jpg"><img alt="Breach Candy" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgThDOERI/AAAAAAAACuA/zF5DgZaIRRc/P1040570_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Breach Candy" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgUz8j_HI/AAAAAAAACuE/VNBlOvptL0o/s1600-h/P10405772.jpg"><img alt="Peddar Road" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgVwblK9I/AAAAAAAACuI/-DQgDEbaC5k/P1040577_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Peddar Road" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgXvPiGUI/AAAAAAAACuM/q7zOlaC8m-Q/s1600-h/P10405653.jpg"><img alt="Sandringham Villa, B. Desai Rd." border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgY2Ok8hI/AAAAAAAACuQ/GsjXtDoKdl4/P1040565_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sandringham Villa, B. Desai Rd." width="504" /></a><br />
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I also finally managed to catch up with my father’s old team at the Breach Candy Hospital, and was immediately reminded of the issues that India faces in it’s transition from old culture to better practices... <br />
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<a name='more'></a>Female infanticide is a huge issue in India, driven by girls not carrying the family name, being perceived as less useful in labour terms, and most importantly resulting in huge familial costs in dowry. Sex determination has been made illegal to prevent the abortion of female foetuses, but one wonders how many more baby girls suffer the fate of infanticide because of it. <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgaCzJ4rI/AAAAAAAACuU/EpoiVICl-Y0/s1600-h/P10405552.jpg"><img alt="P1040555" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYga1yyT5I/AAAAAAAACuY/kKFhkyRedx4/P1040555_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040555" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgcL6afVI/AAAAAAAACuc/D0GYA5mMaD8/s1600-h/P10405513.jpg"><img alt="P1040551" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgdLvENII/AAAAAAAACug/vHbW3c-mDS0/P1040551_thumb9.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040551" width="244" /></a><br />
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Got to back to Bombay just in time to catch a train straight out to Sholapur. The team at SSP knew I wanted to get out into the field before I left and they very kindly arranged a whirlwind tour of some of the villages and women they work with in rural Maharashtra. To give you some idea of the size of India, Sholapur is in the same state as Bombay, but the train ride still took 8 hours overnight. <br />
We left from Dadar station at about 10pm, and the platforms were crushed even at night. Most of the longer distance trains in India have air-conditioned sleeper class carriages, with drop down bunks, which are comfortable and spacious enough for a decent sleep. What’s extra cool is that they provide clean sheets, pillow cases and blankets in a sealed paper bag for every bunk. Loved it!<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgeUmS_MI/AAAAAAAACuk/UQZipXSCyxo/s1600-h/P10403221.jpg"><img alt="Dadar station at night" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgfUQzbjI/AAAAAAAACuo/ZWnAU5idbv4/P1040322_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Dadar station at night" width="504" /></a>&nbsp; <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYggkMVUlI/AAAAAAAACus/BJfM7X86zAY/s1600-h/P10403262.jpg"><img alt="People still fighting on at 10pm" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYghVijANI/AAAAAAAACuw/w85rYb6-C38/P1040326_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="People still fighting on at 10pm" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgidH4zwI/AAAAAAAACu0/IZwxwz9QkGA/s1600-h/P10403382.jpg"><img alt="Sleeper carriages before lights out" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgjoK0DNI/AAAAAAAACu4/EsLLr17B1JI/P1040338_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sleeper carriages before lights out" width="244" /></a><br />
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We travelled to villages near Usmanabad and Sholapur to talk to rural women that SSP has provided micro-loans to, and to learn how they’re using the money. While discussing knowledge sharing and local support, one of the things we realised that if things continued to progress for individuals, they would soon be competing against each other; which brings us to another element of design: Long-Termism in full-community economic improvement. <br />
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If individuals start working against each other it will undo many of the early stage benefits, so the design of funding and support must encourage and incentivise co-operative mechanisms, first on local scales and then regional scales. <br />
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<b>Rural village near Sholapur</b><br />
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<img alt="Village housing near Usmanabad" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgkaPtmTI/AAAAAAAACu8/TbEQjonRStg/P1040348_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Village housing near Usmanabad" width="244" />&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYglk6-6OI/AAAAAAAACvA/5rfUJRQnrao/s1600-h/P10403452.jpg"><img alt="Women entrepreneurs telling us about how they've been using micro-loans." border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgmvIpavI/AAAAAAAACvE/UK3KmHkXp84/P1040345_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Women entrepreneurs telling us about how they've been using micro-loans." width="244" /></a><br />
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While we were there we witness a really interesting phenomenon. Community group weddings. Multiple marriages at the same event. These save huge cost and also bring the community together. Even more interestingly, a Hindu function (wedding) and Muslim function (coming of age ceremony) were being held simultaneously on opposite sides of the street, with no discord whatsoever. <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgngt0dNI/AAAAAAAACvI/QWcS7bpFr4U/s1600-h/P104036418.jpg"><img alt="Hindu community group wedding" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgotPEcSI/AAAAAAAACvM/AzcXDGQnr7o/P1040364_thumb18.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Hindu community group wedding" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgpzWEk_I/AAAAAAAACvQ/eOVcpuIIZ-M/s1600-h/P10403671.jpg"><img alt="Muslim coming of age ceremony" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgq6ILOsI/AAAAAAAACvU/8KnpOJPP0sc/P1040367_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Muslim coming of age ceremony" width="244" /></a><br />
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<b>Micro-Enterprise</b><br />
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Micro-enterprises may not look like much to a generation used to malls and Gucci stores, but the picture below is of a full grain-based enterprise from machinery to storage.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgrwXj6lI/AAAAAAAACvY/6vAoqhH2PLY/s1600-h/P10403681.jpg"><img alt="Micro-enterprise. " border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgs8AaViI/AAAAAAAACvc/g7RM5Qh_0lU/P1040368_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Micro-enterprise." width="504" /></a><br />
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We also visited a local hospital catering to a number of the surrounding villages. It was reasonably neat, but a far cry from the hospital you or I might imagine.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYguVkDUyI/AAAAAAAACvg/MteQkuLiWNc/s1600-h/P10403572.jpg"><img alt="Rural doctor's waiting room" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgvIoCDII/AAAAAAAACvk/El1bulkbIWg/P1040357_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Rural doctor's waiting room" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgwDezEJI/AAAAAAAACvo/RZcm7rnXpgI/s1600-h/P10403592.jpg"><img alt="Rural hospital ward" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgxNFOrzI/AAAAAAAACvs/FLXAamRJs1g/P1040359_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Rural hospital ward" width="244" /></a><br />
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From there we headed over to another village closer to Usmanabad. This time a strong muslim community, where many of the women face cultural restrictions, but still operate small enterprises. Interestingly in many of the cases, the men run the errands, and do the buying and taking of products to market. In essence, taking direction from their women, who own the enterprises. Micro-loans here are creating not just economic development, but also cultural change.<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgyfTSrfI/AAAAAAAACvw/Y8OLb54Psow/s1600-h/P10403712.jpg"><img alt="Village street" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYgzTIP4AI/AAAAAAAACv4/ogCeEIAF7tk/P1040371_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Village street" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg0nb-QrI/AAAAAAAACv8/eyi70vnW2eE/s1600-h/P10403782.jpg"><img alt="Muslim women entrepreneurs in rural Maharashtra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg1SbW7eI/AAAAAAAACwA/K5GsvBw3Gbc/P1040378_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Muslim women entrepreneurs in rural Maharashtra" width="244" /></a><br />
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I then got my first look at the items sold by SSP’s retail arm, which provides access to socially responsible products. Sadly although these products have great value to the user, sometimes the design has not been thought through or tested properly, and often the pricing is completely out of range. The result is that products get used for purposes other than intended, or never make it their intended market at all.<br />
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<b><a href="http://sakhiretail.com/index_files/Page1273.htm" target="_blank">Sakhi Retail and Products</a></b><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg2u-LqRI/AAAAAAAACwE/CervLuFWz1k/s1600-h/P10403872.jpg"><img alt="Sakhi Retail store" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg3qDO20I/AAAAAAAACwI/7Nt_6Ryre7o/P1040387_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sakhi Retail store" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg5EzIOiI/AAAAAAAACwM/j_dtzTBl7uY/s1600-h/P10404122.jpg"><img alt="Prema Gopalan and the Directors of Sakhi Retail" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg5xWHBrI/AAAAAAAACwQ/ZN9f-FTr0-Q/P1040412_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Prema Gopalan and the Directors of Sakhi Retail" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg6zfg-sI/AAAAAAAACwU/i-L_Ovgj6XE/s1600-h/P10403962.jpg"><img alt="Pellet based Bio Fuel Stove. While essentially cheaper than the normal kerosene stove, it turns out that you cannot save pellets for reuse, making it very inefficient and on balance more expensive." border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg72tIA_I/AAAAAAAACwY/S2dYmmqEAzY/P1040396_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Pellet based Bio Fuel Stove. While essentially cheaper than the normal kerosene stove, it turns out that you cannot save pellets for reuse, making it very inefficient and on balance more expensive." width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg9GB8rWI/AAAAAAAACwc/Ishi6aOovpo/s1600-h/P10404012.jpg"><img alt="D-Light Solar Light - Intended for use in fields. Design means it's more often used in homes for reading and studying. It is also outside the budget of most people, but still very successful." border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg-ENrYvI/AAAAAAAACwg/zsfwXeW5UtM/P1040401_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="D-Light Solar Light - Intended for use in fields. Design means it's more often used in homes for reading and studying. It is also outside the budget of most people, but still very successful." width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYg_ceuwCI/AAAAAAAACwk/LglVS5uASdo/s1600-h/P10404032.jpg"><img alt="SMS based remote control switches. Great for turning machinery on or off remotely." border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhAIWVrSI/AAAAAAAACwo/JPYncphAUsM/P1040403_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="SMS based remote control switches. Great for turning machinery on or off remotely." width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhBAAKPYI/AAAAAAAACws/_x2wX8wX1N0/s1600-h/P10404072.jpg"><img alt="Pure water filter. At over Rs.2000 it is way too expensive. " border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhCClE_bI/AAAAAAAACww/phnXmyFi1Vo/P1040407_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Pure water filter. At over Rs.2000 it is way too expensive." width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhDJ2qkdI/AAAAAAAACw0/m4ltCE_XLqo/s1600-h/P1040410%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Fridge. Interestingly people don't buy this fridge because they expect a fridge to be upstanding, and not flip-top. While cheaper than a normal fridge, it is still too expensive to make the inconvenience worthwhile. People prefer to wait and pay the extra for a proper fridge or not bother at all." border="0" height="244" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhD5agdZI/AAAAAAAACw4/KjB_0FmlAik/P1040410_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Fridge. Interestingly people don't buy this fridge because they expect a fridge to be upstanding, and not flip-top. While cheaper than a normal fridge, it is still too expensive to make the inconvenience worthwhile. People prefer to wait and pay the extra for a proper fridge or not bother at all." width="184" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhFNFA52I/AAAAAAAACw8/wyseF62Z0wM/s1600-h/P1040402%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Solar lantern. " border="0" height="244" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhGO5FS7I/AAAAAAAACxA/0BVmTnYRH6w/P1040402_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Solar lantern." width="184" /></a><br />
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I got back to Bombay just in time for a house-warming ceremony at my friend’s place, where I was staying. I tried to keep a low profile in the background because I had absolutely no clue about all that was transpiring around me. Still it was interesting and we got to eat some good sweets! <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhHSH3S6I/AAAAAAAACxE/HuknKxX1MGI/s1600-h/P10404703.jpg"><img alt="Bits and pieces in readiness for a Pooja " border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhIVZgllI/AAAAAAAACxI/syKpkvYniCI/P1040470_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Bits and pieces in readiness for a Pooja" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhJShI49I/AAAAAAAACxM/ZYALAHIbUv4/s1600-h/P10404713.jpg"><img alt="The Pandit warming up!" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhKEgIpuI/AAAAAAAACxQ/BIeqHwtDtqo/P1040471_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="The Pandit warming up!" width="244" /></a><br />
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I did my bit to help with the moving in, mostly by inadvertently breaking everything that wasn’t properly set up. The Air Con for example. Fortunately this was all taken in the right spirit. Thank goodness for childhood friends!! Outside my window high up in Cuffe Parade, the view spanned the usual dichotomies of Indian life, with high rises on one side and massive slums on the other. It’s amazing how people living two such completely different lives, coexist so closely, and how such a huge example of hardship can be completely ignored by those who look down on it.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhLvwfcAI/AAAAAAAACxU/IVzbdd700nc/s1600-h/P1040423%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Poor man's Cuffe Parade. Ambedkar Nagar slum." border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhM3s_40I/AAAAAAAACxY/7rHwlntpyPA/P1040423_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Poor man's Cuffe Parade. Ambedkar Nagar slum." width="504" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhN_GrH9I/AAAAAAAACxc/bqvn4s58t9o/s1600-h/P1040434%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Rich man's Cuffe Parade" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhPOWspxI/AAAAAAAACxg/PcvFl28QJiA/P1040434_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Rich man's Cuffe Parade" width="504" /></a><br />
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Before I left, I caught up one last time with all my school friends, and also squeezed in a few last goodbyes with all the different teams and projects I worked with. Apart from the SSP team, I managed to find some time for the guys at Teach 4 India, although the details of those workshops have blurred a bit now. <br />
Ran a last workshop with the team at Arpan, which seemed to go down well, and it was great to see that they’re already applying the stuff we worked on.<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhQAvH8OI/AAAAAAAACxk/EbXrAbtB71Y/s1600-h/P1040595%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Team Arpan" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhRISkelI/AAAAAAAACxo/I8n8FD3AI7E/P1040595_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Team Arpan" width="504" /></a><br />
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Mostly though I was sad to say bye to the Bombay Ashoka crew, who hung out with me all the way through the Indian Adventures. <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhS39eqeI/AAAAAAAACxs/t1vr05lSA6E/s1600-h/P1040667%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Leaving lunch with the Ashoka crew, Bombay. Fun times!!" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIYhT2eREkI/AAAAAAAACxw/mut6FXlMR7Y/P1040667_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Leaving lunch with the Ashoka crew, Bombay. Fun times!!" width="504" /></a><br />
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So to end the Indian Adventure, here’s a big <b>thanks </b>to all my old friends who looked after me, the Indian projects for accommodating me, and all the lovely new people I met and new friends I made along the way. Till the next time!!<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/go_S6DBxcTU" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/09/adventures-in-maharashtra-rural.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-56545247184527430172010-09-03T20:40:00.004+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.674+02:00Adventures in Delhi: Old Friends and New RealitiesAfter a week in Hyderabad working with Gray Matters Capital, I headed to Delhi to meet up with the Ashoka team and an old friend I haven’t seen in nearly two decades. Nitin and his awesome wife put me up for the entire time I was in Delhi, which made a nice change from the hotel I’d been staying in previously. But the best part was catching up and finding that we still got on the same. Very cool.<br />
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We drank tea in tiny cups, Indian style, and I learnt all sorts of fascinating stuff about the construction industry.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDnosc6BgI/AAAAAAAACo0/W2UhHmHDguQ/s1600-h/P1030771%5B5%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030771" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDnqQgt0RI/AAAAAAAACo4/gU6qhoHJksU/P1030771_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030771" width="504" /></a><br />
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Delhi is an absolutely Massive city. I was working in South Delhi and staying in East Delhi. The journey averaged out at over an hour, and trying to get rickshaws to cover that distance was pretty much impossible, and frankly in 47 degrees wasn’t really desirable either! Fortunately India has fantastic radio taxi services, that are fully SMS responsive. You have to see it to believe the efficiency.<br />
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As a city it’s a little like Rome in that it is littered with ancient buildings, forts, and monuments. Visiting these are dead cheap for locals but hugely expensive for foreigners. There are also plenty of markets in Delhi, from traditional ones like Sarojini market, and the new shopping squares like the Defence Colony market.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDnzJr0jGI/AAAAAAAACo8/hFFPZGQx1Cs/s1600-h/P1030755%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Sarojini Nagar Market" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDn-GvXALI/AAAAAAAACpA/M-qK_S2HLOs/P1030755_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sarojini Nagar Market" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoMn6oMkI/AAAAAAAACpE/YkRqC-_roLM/s1600-h/P1030908%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Defense Colony Market" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoNZfsA-I/AAAAAAAACpI/uDgSAZLMA5Q/P1030908_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Defense Colony Market" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a name='more'></a>While in Delhi I made a trip to Mount Abu in Rajasthan to visit another school friend, who is the Prince of Bikaner. I wasn’t really expecting his home to be a Palace, but I made the most of it!<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoPvS1lxI/AAAAAAAACpM/wDb1krWekLA/s1600-h/P1030950%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030950" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoQi-tPoI/AAAAAAAACpQ/x7w-U01eN8Y/P1030950_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030950" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoS8iIV_I/AAAAAAAACpU/lpJSB4dcR34/s1600-h/P1040049%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1040049" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDoUF9DfII/AAAAAAAACpY/kAy4DmDZTzs/P1040049_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040049" width="244" /></a><br />
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On the way there, I got a glimpse of how simply copying designs from one environment and forcing it onto others rarely works. The new highways are mirror copies of western systems with huge dividers in the middle and exits every so many miles. This totally disregards the fact that unlike western environments people live along the highways and are never going to travel miles in the wrong direction simply to come back to a spot on the other side of the road. It also ignores the fact that these roads won’t simply be catering for high speed car traffic. Animals typically do what they want anyway, and low-tech machines (like bullocks carts,handcarts and human traffic) have no side lane. So these roads are actually a nightmare of dual sets of two way traffic, rather than the smooth autobahns they probably set out to be.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDopctRlUI/AAAAAAAACpc/LXrA5jGbUSk/s1600-h/P1040093%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Bullock cart moving in the wrong direction on a motorway in Rajasthan" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDosDK-JjI/AAAAAAAACpg/Y718Vgeyh6c/P1040093_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Bullock cart moving in the wrong direction on a motorway in Rajasthan" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpA6X8klI/AAAAAAAACpk/ENh-Wixi2LM/s1600-h/P1040086%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Private jeeps fill in for the lack of public transport" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpFXeOoQI/AAAAAAAACpo/pudw0tQuiq4/P1040086_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Private jeeps fill in for the lack of public transport" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpZrImE4I/AAAAAAAACpw/ASancOz-ack/s1600-h/P1040088%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Children selling fruits on the central divider" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpaxfQshI/AAAAAAAACp0/YAKfYWox5sk/P1040088_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Children selling fruits on the central divider" width="244" /></a><br />
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I got the tour of Delhi and visited the Purana Qila, Rashtrapathi Bhavan, Connaught Square and the original Wimpy’s where I had my first ever foreign fast food as a 14 year old. While out sight-seeing I realised that the mobile phone has not just opened up communications to the masses, but also photography and creativity, which is pretty amazing. People who could never have dreamed of film cameras have moved straight to digital photography, and are making the most of it.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpcUWhRyI/AAAAAAAACp4/QLLdCK6QTlY/s1600-h/P1030823%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Mobile photography" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpdVWIrWI/AAAAAAAACp8/a_PSxlL3PDg/P1030823_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Mobile photography" width="244" />&nbsp;</a><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDphtXEpzI/AAAAAAAACqA/bZYzaFCQjV8/s1600-h/P1030836%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Mobile photography" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpkpD_V-I/AAAAAAAACqE/SqzN1sNhrZ4/P1030836_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Mobile photography" width="244" /></a><br />
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Indian cities are strange dichotomies of the Blade-Runner kind. Very hi-tech and very low-tech co-exist in immediate proximity. The mirror glass of futuristic constructions reflect the dark bases of dilapidated shanty towns that surround them, and gleaming Mercedes S-Classes stream past sweating men pushing loaded hand-carts in the same streams of traffic. Millennial malls are built by labourers using hand-turned concrete mixers, and New York Delis sit side by side with pan wallahs.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpmzHPcEI/AAAAAAAACqI/hv4ZCXdOYGY/s1600-h/P1040113%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="City Walk Mall in Delhi" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpnoU9ZrI/AAAAAAAACqM/3dml9MoYsjM/P1040113_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="City Walk Mall in Delhi" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpq7dO9xI/AAAAAAAACqQ/m0gJ0fcJXhs/s1600-h/P1030830%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Manually mixing concrete" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpsaMJeEI/AAAAAAAACqU/dS9jC9JNBeQ/P1030830_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Manually mixing concrete" width="244" /></a><br />
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Unlike Bombay, Delhi has vast Chawls, which are sort of like multi-storey slums. They reminded me of Favelas, although these are higher and more densely packed together.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpvyzVq1I/AAAAAAAACqY/V4IckP-wn5I/s1600-h/P1040278%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Chawl in East Delhi" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDpxrzIa_I/AAAAAAAACqc/FifS-yCHi64/P1040278_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Chawl in East Delhi" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDp3pmLsII/AAAAAAAACqg/2jkUSpxykoI/s1600-h/P1040279%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Chawl in East Delhi " border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDp5E-l4aI/AAAAAAAACqk/hcSeEYMAEtg/P1040279_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Chawl in East Delhi" width="244" /></a><br />
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Nitin also introduced me to two of the greatest inventions ever. The electronic mosquito racket and Chaat masala. (see below) The latter I knew of, but hadn’t really fully appreciated until this trip. Makes pretty much anything taste fabulous!<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDp-sydajI/AAAAAAAACqo/V-dOcP6IdFg/s1600-h/P1030774%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030774" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIDqBmK5HVI/AAAAAAAACqs/o6pjqZULGKU/P1030774_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030774" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFATNgd9TI/AAAAAAAACqw/T3s0VL-oI90/s1600-h/P10403172.jpg"><img alt="P1040317" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAUIj11CI/AAAAAAAACq0/VL07Oq3bKuo/P1040317_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040317" width="244" /></a><br />
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Towards the end, thanks to my friend Elenice, who was down from Brazil, I actually made it to Agra. Heat notwithstanding, the Taj Mahal was as stunning as I remember, and the Agra Red Fort was a revelation. A photographers dream come true. All angles and colours and variations. 16 examples of great architecture on the same site.<br />
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<b>Taj Mahal</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAVQnEiWI/AAAAAAAACq4/J3mATbWwJsQ/s1600-h/P10401392.jpg"><img alt="Elenice" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAWzAZX4I/AAAAAAAACq8/y3DZkR5n0jo/P1040139_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Elenice" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAYB09mXI/AAAAAAAACrA/KCijGWI6gRs/s1600-h/P10401302.jpg"><img alt="Entrance to the Taj" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAYyHbzwI/AAAAAAAACrE/Ef-ZnZfyB_E/P1040130_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Entrance to the Taj" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAaGbgHdI/AAAAAAAACrI/5ijDo-YMpSw/s1600-h/P10401592.jpg"><img alt="Mosque beside the Taj" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAbV5lPOI/AAAAAAAACrM/kYTsfKeZGms/P1040159_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Mosque beside the Taj" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAcv0xVOI/AAAAAAAACrQ/yNVpqxSLGfA/s1600-h/P10401332.jpg"><img alt="Taj Mahal" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAdgvbNpI/AAAAAAAACrU/TM0NnysKmc0/P1040133_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Taj Mahal" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAeryYzII/AAAAAAAACrY/rI097EeWyLc/s1600-h/P10401362.jpg"><img alt="Taj Mahal" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAfwqEvTI/AAAAAAAACrc/zySC4yYY21E/P1040136_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Taj Mahal" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAg6HGVBI/AAAAAAAACrg/XV-be8edRhs/s1600-h/P104015810.jpg"><img alt="Taj Mahal" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAiSPquEI/AAAAAAAACrk/3pV0MEKZG8U/P1040158_thumb8.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Taj Mahal" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAjeo7TLI/AAAAAAAACro/StpSud2OYJ4/s1600-h/P10401712.jpg"><img alt="P1040171" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAkc0sV8I/AAAAAAAACrs/R2xxGNsppjU/P1040171_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040171" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAlSWHUMI/AAAAAAAACrw/p0ny3-D3Vdo/s1600-h/P10401872.jpg"><img alt="P1040187" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAmRo_NWI/AAAAAAAACr0/389L8tGPgAQ/P1040187_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040187" width="244" /></a><br />
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<b>Red Fort</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAnhWj0hI/AAAAAAAACr4/y2yxNeCGMBw/s1600-h/P10402042.jpg"><img alt="Entrance to the Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAotKdyPI/AAAAAAAACr8/PMz7wlfY36M/P1040204_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Entrance to the Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAp9qb1dI/AAAAAAAACsA/52fXa57k-7A/s1600-h/P10402092.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFArJITMtI/AAAAAAAACsE/MaGgUDa4vZw/P1040209_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAsV9ugQI/AAAAAAAACsI/zdGiVHi7oSw/s1600-h/P10402122.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAtTNfiWI/AAAAAAAACsM/uy8T-akRunE/P1040212_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAuZsmh9I/AAAAAAAACsQ/JYS0jCXbBLg/s1600-h/P10402202.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAvWC7UFI/AAAAAAAACsU/Him6zuEXwvI/P1040220_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAwtx-BbI/AAAAAAAACsY/ya2YAKIXEU0/s1600-h/P10402392.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAxhAp32I/AAAAAAAACsc/CTSMRsqjMkk/P1040239_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFAzLde5PI/AAAAAAAACsg/PNIaGCNHT_k/s1600-h/P10402542.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA0NqEQgI/AAAAAAAACsk/lrApn1TvmbM/P1040254_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA1YtMtnI/AAAAAAAACso/mpxAe2ylZB4/s1600-h/P10402613.jpg"><img alt="Red Fort, Agra" border="0" height="324" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA2e8jvJI/AAAAAAAACss/n2s3VJWcBfQ/P1040261_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Red Fort, Agra" width="244" /></a><br />
<br />
While in Delhi I spent most of my time with the Ashoka team, working on how to practically implement the concept of Confluences, but I also worked on a few other projects. <br />
<br />
<ul><li><b>AVPN</b></li>
</ul>While looking at some of the things that AVPN are trying to achieve, I stripped out another Blueprint Model based on the work I did for Gray Matters Capital. This is a model for changing large-scale embedded systems / sectors. <br />
<ol><li>Trigger Change </li>
<li>Develop ecosystem </li>
<li>Build Movement </li>
<li>Increase Reach </li>
</ol>Below is the real example developed for AVPN to generate massive improvement and scalability for the non-profit sector in India. This is the same model being applied by Gray Matter Capital to improving quality of education in India, and frankly is a model that can be applied anywhere.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA3Z9x2TI/AAAAAAAACsw/yRVBapPaSlA/s1600-h/P10308793.jpg"><img alt="P1030879" border="0" height="671" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA4zQ7KwI/AAAAAAAACs0/82I4c7uFJMw/P1030879_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030879" width="504" /></a><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://ndia.ashoka.org/" target="_blank"><b>Ashoka</b></a> <br />
The Ashoka team in India was going through a massive restructure and a transition to another operating model, so I ended up spending most of my time sharing the ideas and planning developed in Bombay and Bangalore. From the news I hear, the transition has been difficult, but I had fun hanging out with the team in Delhi. </li>
</ul><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA5y2YbXI/AAAAAAAACs4/hsAFsPbFyYQ/s1600-h/P10401002.jpg"><img alt="P1040100" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA6wJp_pI/AAAAAAAACs8/ZQMqST-O7o8/P1040100_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040100" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA8C7vDGI/AAAAAAAACtA/H83fnHgZ-z8/s1600-h/P10402832.jpg"><img alt="P1040283" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA9Lkt6rI/AAAAAAAACtE/egUNHPba-DY/P1040283_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040283" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA-sJf5nI/AAAAAAAACtI/Aq6XVzWTYmA/s1600-h/P10402802.jpg"><img alt="P1040280" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFA_grvg4I/AAAAAAAACtM/j4aG3QexJac/P1040280_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040280" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFBA4OoMYI/AAAAAAAACtQ/jUAcH1BIaQw/s1600-h/P10402822.jpg"><img alt="P1040282" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/TIFBCfAQVRI/AAAAAAAACtU/1undk2JhFSQ/P1040282_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1040282" width="244" /></a><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.theypfoundation.org/" target="_blank"><b>The YP Foundation (Youth Parliament)</b></a> <br />
I randomly met Ishita in the Ashoka office, who is a key person in a youth led organisation called Youth Parliament. They were struggling with organisational stability, so we looked at governance and how to restructure to ensure knowledge transfer and improved fluidity of decision-making in an environment with continually changing members. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.musicbasti.org/" target="_blank"><b>Music Basti</b></a> <br />
This is a young organisation providing education through music workshops for children at risk. We discussed the challenges of managing funder pressures and organisational development, especially without deep experience or commercial skills. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.khemkafoundation.org" target="_blank"><b>Khemka Foundation</b></a> <br />
This foundation wanted to play a key role in the development of Social Enterprise in India, and was looking for offline, event based ways of bringing different players and thinking together. Unfortunately while the goal was valid, neither the financial nor resource commitment really suggested that the primary donors were serious. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.zmqsoft.com/" target="_blank"><b>ZMQ</b></a> <br />
This is one of the most amazing organisations you probably haven’t heard of. It is a ‘technology for development’ company and has built mobile applications to address social issues ranging from health to education and has impacted almost 30m people in critical environments around the world, and is run by two brothers, Hilmi and Subhi Qureishi. Their challenges were primarily around scaling and resourcing, so we looked at open source models and potentially setting up the first OpenSource ‘technology for development’ platform, using crowd-sourcing to scale their applications on to new platforms. </li></ul><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/FpMTFD9Ov4I" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/09/adventures-in-delhi.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-40002724660997883262010-05-13T16:34:00.002+03:002011-11-10T07:34:02.675+02:00Adventures in Hyderabad: Handi Biryani & Extreme SportsArriving in Hyderabad was a breathe of fresh, errr slightly less polluted, air. An organisation called Gray Matters Capital flew me in but there was some issue with accommodation over the weekend, so Shabnam and her mates very kindly put me up for a couple nights. <br />
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I stayed in Banjara Hills, which seems to be the heart of the ‘new’ city with every glass fronted and shimmering American brand you can imagine, and drove through Jubilee Hills where all the ‘Tollywood’ stars live. Turns out there’s a massive Telegu film industry. Who knew?? There’s also a lovely lake in the city and Hyderabad is overall reasonably pretty. Nicer than I expected. Sadly I never made it to the Char Minar, which is in the old city, but I did get to one of the low cost private schools out there, and also to a traditional biryani joint. <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_XWOnvdI/AAAAAAAACYk/xbpWauA2P1M/s1600-h/P1030698%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Handi Biryani" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_YQFmNuI/AAAAAAAACYo/pZi4i_n1Mk0/P1030698_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Handi Biryani" width="504" /></a><br />
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Chicken 65 is THE snack for Hyderabadis, but Handi Biryani is the main course to eat. The specialty is chicken rather than meat, probably because chicken is generally cheaper to get hold of. You usually get one large piece of chicken and a humongous portion of rice, some kind of curry, raita, onions and lemon. You can get family packs for 4 or 6 which would feed a small army rather than just a family.<br />
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<a name='more'></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_aTlPY2I/AAAAAAAACYs/uMw-_X8X1qs/s1600-h/P1030699%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="Biryani with the team in the old city" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_bwh9LaI/AAAAAAAACYw/TtaemIRwh4A/P1030699_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Biryani with the team in the old city" width="504" /></a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_cxtA3UI/AAAAAAAACY0/KqXyul2XWxg/s1600-h/P1030596%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Biryani deal at Hyderabad House" border="0" height="504" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_d5k7z7I/AAAAAAAACY4/QyQDk-F2zCQ/P1030596_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Biryani deal at Hyderabad House" width="379" /></a><br />
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The only drawback for some might be the dry heat, which is a bit like stepping out into a hair-dryer every time you leave the house. Personally I’ll take the heat over any kind of cold any day. It does however mean that handkerchiefs are still in full use. Need something to wipe those drips off!<br />
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The high point of achievement in Hyderabad is HITEC city, which honestly is mind-boggling. Buildings like you’d never imagine would be built in India. Huge, glass, gleaming and solid. Very impressed! <br />
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Apparently the city is also pretty decent for partying, but since I went to Extreme Sports three times in the week I was there, I’m not so convinced :D Having said that, they do the greatest crispy corn snack thing and the biggest chicken platter I’ve ever eaten! <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_e6Rb_WI/AAAAAAAACY8/1s17s0Jcbgo/s1600-h/P1030606%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Crispy corn and chicken platter at Extreme Sports with Arfan" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_f4pAnYI/AAAAAAAACZA/K8EeeZQhaFY/P1030606_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Crispy corn and chicken platter at Extreme Sports with Arfan" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_hSOX75I/AAAAAAAACZE/mqXXkLRsuaM/s1600-h/P1030604%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Catching up with Arfan in Hyderabad" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_ifyvvsI/AAAAAAAACZI/h6OBbZO_734/P1030604_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Catching up with Arfan in Hyderabad" width="504" /></a><br />
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There’s big fancy five star hotels all over the place, and apparently Sunday Brunch is a big deal. Apparently you can get flat rate deals that provide food, beers and full use of the facilities for the whole family all afternoon. Can’t knock the life of ex-pats ;)<br />
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Hyderabad was also more fun because I had more social interaction; with the lovely folks at GMC, Shabnam and friends, and a bit of UK jokes with Arfan and his mates. Went out for a first anniversary do for Sharayu’s sister’s restaurant, some fancy bar in one of Hyd’s three Taj hotels, Extreme Sports of course, and a Thai place that reminded me of the breakfast joint I used to frequent in Mexico city.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_lIDfarI/AAAAAAAACZM/GzG8yaJaPgw/s1600-h/P1030625%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Buffet!" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_m714XrI/AAAAAAAACZQ/a0aQ2rdii6c/P1030625_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Buffet!" width="504" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_oFzZpHI/AAAAAAAACZU/b5RU_uOMNz0/s1600-h/P1030630%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Free dinner with Ivan and Sharayu" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_pF2ELmI/AAAAAAAACZY/2MeFLBs__qs/P1030630_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Free dinner with Ivan and Sharayu" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_qGQ6CQI/AAAAAAAACZc/PSMpPFE6zAI/s1600-h/P1030642%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Jokes with Arfan on the rooftop at F9" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_rNQhxXI/AAAAAAAACZg/3UhO4sA4mZo/P1030642_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Jokes with Arfan on the rooftop at F9" width="504" /></a><br />
<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_sE9QAMI/AAAAAAAACZk/z_3QwYSGD1c/s1600-h/P1030727%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Hanging with Pradeep after work" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_tvvEfXI/AAAAAAAACZo/PaiCpzsk85E/P1030727_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Hanging with Pradeep after work" width="504" /></a><br />
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As always. there was work involved. For once I was mostly focused on just one organisation for the whole period. <br />
<ul><li><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.graymatterscap.com/" target="_blank"><b>Gray Matters Capital</b></a> – are trying to improve quality of education for low income populations through market based services focused on low cost (affordable) private schools (APS). The plan is to trigger change through the development and subsidised deployment of a rating mechanism, then investing in and developing the service ecosystem needed to deliver improvements to quality, and supporting the whole mechanism by mobilising a movement around the issue. Over a pretty intense week we looked at mission and strategy, problem definition, long term impact design and assessment, cost modelling, leveraging the web for building movement, and organisational structure. <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_u1F-_KI/AAAAAAAACZs/JR5OVZEjZyo/s1600-h/P1030614%5B23%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030614" border="0" height="294" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_v0uVGhI/AAAAAAAACZw/kvtdhyTMTZM/P1030614_thumb%5B26%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030614" width="454" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.millee.org/" target="_blank"><b>Millee</b></a> – Unfortunately couldn’t make all that much time for Shabnam’s org which is building educational mobile games to help improve English literacy in government schools. The best I could do was input a little around the user-experience of the games, but Millee is worth a mention to help raise awareness of what they’re doing. Check em out!</li>
</ul>While working with GMC, the team took me on a tour to check out some low cost English medium private schools. The level which they focus on fall into the Rs.250 to 350 a month (about £4-5). These are typically built incrementally as you can see from the pics below. They start the school with a basic rough structure and then add plaster etc as income starts to flow in. One fascinating thing was seeing the really fancy school bus at one of the schools. Apparently school buses are taken as an indicator of quality by parents so these schools make it one of their few major investments. However, since the charges are pretty much the same as the whole month’s worth of schooling, the outlay gets covered pretty fast.<br />
Here’s an example of what’s considered to be a really good school…<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_wzCzfxI/AAAAAAAACZ0/DFfVxcsh8jM/s1600-h/P1030650%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="High quality low cost private school" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_x29wODI/AAAAAAAACZ4/vfiU7_-GDmk/P1030650_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="High quality low cost private school" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_yyhZaiI/AAAAAAAACZ8/rKvosH6mFT8/s1600-h/P1030657%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030657" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_z8iWMII/AAAAAAAACaA/KILRB4PiMzc/P1030657_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030657" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_1DENhdI/AAAAAAAACaE/-fuKd2Vbk9s/s1600-h/P1030658%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030658" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_2Bi6_dI/AAAAAAAACaI/w3Sx4swO48Q/P1030658_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030658" width="504" /></a><br />
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And one at the bottom of the spectrum…<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_3PB4DgI/AAAAAAAACaM/jVFGr9ZQ4OI/s1600-h/P1030673%5B5%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030673" border="0" height="504" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_4N-C9TI/AAAAAAAACaQ/msH-Ps7h7rg/P1030673_thumb%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030673" width="379" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_5JBj1uI/AAAAAAAACaU/B9zuZ8RkQWo/s1600-h/P1030674%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="Low quality low cost private school" border="0" height="504" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_6PuuxvI/AAAAAAAACaY/UMfaW-ULfAs/P1030674_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Low quality low cost private school" width="379" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_6wbs4PI/AAAAAAAACac/HwDY7AC49Bo/s1600-h/P1030681%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030681" border="0" height="504" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_71hlKGI/AAAAAAAACag/WjL2X1iLuEE/P1030681_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030681" width="379" /></a> <br />
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Finally, and most nostalgically, I finally laid my hands on Targolas. No idea what they’re called in English, but I love them. Took me back to my childhood and the joys of Indian fruit!!<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_9WFpYYI/AAAAAAAACak/w7yJyOs9fh4/s1600-h/P1030686%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Selling Targola's on the street" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v_-YfmsmI/AAAAAAAACao/QEjms5DXnMg/P1030686_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Selling Targola's on the street" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-v__ruupSI/AAAAAAAACas/AjLqrCJUERU/s1600-h/P1030690%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Half peeled Targola" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S-wAAUn7M2I/AAAAAAAACaw/vnZzFcLbPEY/P1030690_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Half peeled Targola" width="504" /></a><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/dcLUa3hkX5g" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/05/adventures-in-hyderabad-handi-biryani.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-19464903698205375662010-05-01T19:17:00.003+03:002011-11-10T07:34:02.677+02:00Adventures in Bangalore: Banana Leaves & Lost FriendsI arrived in Bangalore a couple of weeks ago on Sunday 18th April and headed straight into a heavy meeting with the Ashoka team. We were trying to work out the practicalities of creating and mobilising large scale confluences of people who care about the same issue. This is the new premise behind Ashoka’s development in India. I think we got pretty far with it, but it was heavy going out as I’d picked up some viral bug in Bombay and was in pretty bad shape at the time. Took me a whole week to recover. Since then I’ve been rushing to catch up on projects and work. Hence the latest gap in blogging :)<br />
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Still it was good to catch up with Ashoka crew at Clara’s. Will catch up again with them in Delhi in a week’s time.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xNXtThL0I/AAAAAAAACWI/lAtJ6N4BLsE/s1600-h/P10304273.jpg"><img alt="Ashoka India, Vishnu, Solomon and Clara" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xNZ8M8MPI/AAAAAAAACWM/2l2Jv5R39xA/P1030427_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Ashoka India, Vishnu, Solomon and Clara" width="504" /></a><br />
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Also got to hang out with Vinit, one my oldest school friends, who now manages a large garment business. Come a very long way from causing mischief at the back of the class together to special treatment in his office as General Manager! I got a tour of the superb factory he set up from scratch. I bet like me, you don’t realise quite how much human labour actually goes into producing the clothes we wear. Pretty much everything is done by people using small machines, rather than any form of automated production technology. From the design, to cutting, to stitching, finishing and even the final ironing. It is hugely labour intensive and I will never take clothes for granted again. <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xNcMKT14I/AAAAAAAACWQ/KeCwxO79W5k/s1600-h/P1030429%5B1%5D.jpg"><img alt="Vinit Mehta" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xOVVBTS2I/AAAAAAAACWU/I__Gf5S3AOM/P1030429_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Vinit Mehta" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xOYxZjOvI/AAAAAAAACWY/BCgAmkQI6U8/s1600-h/P10304482.jpg"><img alt="Vinit Mehta" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xOaxFhmZI/AAAAAAAACWc/XzLamCODaVo/P1030448_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Vinit Mehta" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xQQJbRIdI/AAAAAAAACWg/Gf2DuD09tl0/s1600-h/P10304412.jpg"><img alt="P1030441" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xQR4WX5XI/AAAAAAAACWk/4HzXbR0Y4Go/P1030441_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030441" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xQVejhoPI/AAAAAAAACWo/GgxV1HS2S1A/s1600-h/P10304432.jpg"><img alt="P1030443" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xQW2nONdI/AAAAAAAACWs/dSYIUMLNm3s/P1030443_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030443" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a name='more'></a>Can’t say I fell in love with Bangalore. The traffic and pollution and half made roads didn’t really endear me to the place, especially since I kept having to make hour long journeys in open rickshaws just to get between projects. Somehow expected to see lots of fancy glass covered IT parks, but never really came across them. Mostly low level houses and lots of newly constructed apartment blocks. <br />
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The city is a massive sprawl. Way bigger than I was expecting. Rickshaw drivers do their best to rob you blind, and take full advantage of scarcity or weather (rain) to rack up their prices. I regularly got quoted anything between 3 and 5 times the actual prices. In desperate moments of having to make meetings, I ended paying them the same as the air conditioned Meru cabs! The simple reality is that the only sensible way to travel through Bangalore’s gridlock is scooter. Even motorbikes are really too powerful to sensibly manage in stop start traffic with drivers who have no lane concept. The variety of bikes and helmets is stunning to observe. My favourite being the Dastardly and Muttley style headgear. Sadly I don’t have a picture :(<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xSUqmgO7I/AAAAAAAACW0/cxYwYQssX_M/s1600-h/P10305212.jpg"><img alt="P1030521" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTSc4Q6GI/AAAAAAAACW8/xlbgNUksRvw/P1030521_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030521" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTVMIc-jI/AAAAAAAACXA/K45jd81A8Oo/s1600-h/P10305162.jpg"><img alt="P1030516" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTWpGR17I/AAAAAAAACXE/y1fsTsrJQjw/P1030516_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030516" width="244" /></a><br />
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Buses are rickety as ever, but quite a few of them have electronic destination displays which I was very impressed by. Traffic police wear white stetsons pinned up on one side. Very peculiar and old world reminiscent. The moustache is massive out here, and everyone seems to have one. I almost feel ashamed at my utter lack of genetic ability to grow a respectable tash. I reckon if I could I would’ve grown one just for a jokes attempt to blend in.<br />
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Like everywhere in India food is a big part of culture, and I’ve been tucking into South Indian thalis, or ‘meals’ as they’re actually called. Basically you get a bunch of standard rassams, dals, veg, chutney, papad and rice. All under Rs.100 which is about £1.50. Tasty as. Surprisingly not very spicy. For spicy food you have to eat in Andhra style places. The food here is served on banana leaves rather than plates, and the meal options are veg or non-veg. The non-veg addition is either chicken or mutton fry. I got taken along to a couple of those by some of the guys from Dream A Dream. Too good! <br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTvSHrjRI/AAAAAAAACXI/PPcRCuHIy1A/s1600-h/P10305712.jpg"><img alt="South Indian Mini Meal" border="0" height="384" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTx9EV0sI/AAAAAAAACXM/oEkxG-NocFI/P1030571_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="South Indian Mini Meal" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xTz50GEZI/AAAAAAAACXQ/ly7qCiPscoY/s1600-h/P10305242.jpg"><img alt="Dream A Dream Team" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT1WICBGI/AAAAAAAACXU/XKU_8V-RhU4/P1030524_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Dream A Dream Team" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT4IrOWII/AAAAAAAACXY/28211zs4qV8/s1600-h/P10305262.jpg"><img alt="Andhra Style 'Mutton Fry' Meal" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT55SKIbI/AAAAAAAACXc/HWky6pWx-FM/P1030526_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Andhra Style 'Mutton Fry' Meal" width="244" /></a><br />
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As always in any city, life after projects transitions into fun times and eating and drinking. Went out to a rooftop bar called 13th floor just off the famous MG Road, to party while watching the rain come down. Very cool. Followed by beers in a pub called Tavern at the Inn. Really not so cool. But we got talking about drinks from other countries and I mentioned <a href="http://social-explorer.blogspot.com/2009/11/eats-drinks-and-leaves-adventures-in.html" target="_blank">Clamato</a>, which is big in Mexico, and amazingly the waiter made it for us. It’s basically a spicy Virgin Bloody Mary, in a beer mug with salt around the rim, and mixed with lager. Sounds horrible. Tastes great. The guy made it perfectly! Was gutted that I’d left my camera in the car.<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT8ooRFQI/AAAAAAAACXg/x0aMrTAXqqw/s1600-h/P10304912.jpg"><img alt="P1030491" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT-Ug2-GI/AAAAAAAACXk/YoKXnNe3v1Q/P1030491_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030491" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<img alt="P1030505" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xT_prbT3I/AAAAAAAACXo/g9KbT1mSnHs/P1030505_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1030505" width="244" /><br />
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Of course, the main reason for heading to Bangalore was to experience social development in a different context, and although I lost the better part of a week to some kind of viral fever I still managed to get involved with a few different things<br />
<ul><li><a href="http://india.ashoka.org/"><b>Ashoka India</b></a> – one of the main reasons for coming here was because the Ashoka team requested help with turning the idea of confluences into a practical reality. We looked particularly at designing confluences related to the provision of housing for all (basic premise in the very scruffy sketch below).<br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUCC4nt3I/AAAAAAAACXs/dwi3Uzb_f-A/s1600-h/FECConfluenceModel4.jpg"><img alt="FEC Confluence Model" border="0" height="342" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUELwfdhI/AAAAAAAACXw/T3UXv539QIA/FECConfluenceModel_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 10px 0px 0px;" title="FEC Confluence Model" width="454" /></a> </li>
<li><a href="http://www.sspindia.org/"><b>SSP, SSK, SAST, SSEN, SRPL</b></a> – I’d originally been approached for help with creating collaborative services and operational efficiencies between SSP’s different entities, but after a few sessions in Bombay they were really keen for me to facilitate their two day management workshop in Bangalore, which I did. The primary aim was to ensure mission congruence to build the trust platform for future working together, but in the end we got much closer towards spontaneous organisation around both collaboration and efficiency, which was a great outcome. The best part of it for me, was that the room we used had a blackboard. Weird but fun to be using chalk. Like being back in school!!<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUGXSTQaI/AAAAAAAACX0/EIXx608cJCc/s1600-h/P10304724.jpg"> <br />
<img alt="P1030472" border="0" height="342" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUIVHmZ1I/AAAAAAAACX4/z0VsVEWtnZE/P1030472_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 10px 0px 0px;" title="P1030472" width="454" /></a> </li>
<li><b>IDPMS </b>– This is an organisation involved in the development of sustainable rural community based social enterprise. They’ve worked on very large scale rural and water projects in Karnataka. They were present at SSP’s workshop as the original facilitators particularly focused on Governance. Afterwards they approached me to help them with their own Governance design. Like many organisations with scale and reputation they have many heavyweights on their board but find it very difficult to gain value from their involvement. The solution lay in simplifying the board structure and replacing much of it with advisory groups around the key knowledge and service areas they focus on. </li>
<li><b>Alchemy – </b>This falls more into the category of social business than standard development entity, as they run an English language and interview skills course to help unemployed people move into jobs. They also find work and aim for 100% placements of all course graduates. We looked at their cost modelling and the development of value-add and parallel services that might ensure enough profitability to keep their organisation achieving its goals of developing the potential of young Indians. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.dreamadream.org" target="_blank"><b>Dream A Dream</b></a> – I didn’t actually do any formal work with Dream A Dream this time because it just happened to be a crazy week for them, but they deserve a mention just from the perspective of raising awareness about what they do in terms of long term development of children from vulnerable backgrounds. We talked about the challenges of scaling from working with 2000 children to 36,000 schools. Simply growing organically or trying to create cost efficiencies in the existing model is not going to be the answer so they’re looking at redesigning their programmes in a pilot partnership with 10 schools. Vishal’s vision is to have no more children on the street in India by the end of his lifetime. Believe it. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S90-PqCpbLI/AAAAAAAACYI/Wj5wq4VL3ok/s1600-h/P1030572%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Dream A Dream" border="0" height="342" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S90-SfuTYpI/AAAAAAAACYM/-hvHllcfsiw/P1030572_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline; margin: 10px 0px 0px;" title="Dream A Dream" width="454" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S90-V7dUaSI/AAAAAAAACYU/LPd9U9O8ORo/s1600-h/P1030576%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Vishal Talreja" border="0" height="342" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S90-Xo35oTI/AAAAAAAACYY/usjUXwFCY1k/P1030576_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Vishal Talreja" width="454" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://grassroutes.in/" target="_blank"><b>Grassroutes</b></a> – Runs road-trips for social change in India. We discussed realistic possibilities for transforming into a viable self-financing enterprise, potentially by opening up the target audience into an older demographic that can and will pay for a form of social tourism. This would support the primary mission while cross-subsidising the fellowship program that they normally run. Well worth checking out if you want to know more about the social landscape in India. </li>
</ul>Finally to end on a note of remembrance. I stayed with the parents of a friend of mine who passed away in 2003 of Leukaemia. Along with a small number of other children who lived down the same lane, Udai Kamath was a daily part of my entire childhood. We grew up and played together mostly every evening. He was there at all my birthdays and major events, and was one of the most genuinely beautiful people I’ve ever known. <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUKk0pXuI/AAAAAAAACX8/xrRcm3ND1a0/s1600-h/P10305559.jpg"><img alt="Udai Kamath" border="0" height="366" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S9xUMyOgdPI/AAAAAAAACYA/ZUTuPXUZWsc/P1030555_thumb16.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Udai Kamath" width="521" /></a><br />
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I looked at pictures and remembered old times. My memory of much of my childhood is heavily swiss-cheesed, but Udai stands out amongst all the kids I knew for his amazing good nature and sense of fun and mischievousness. Our lives are genuinely less bright for his passing. I wish there was anything I could say that would do justice, but I don’t have the words. Instead I’ll use my sister’s, from a poem she wrote in <a href="http://shaistatayabali.blogspot.com/2009/04/angel.html" target="_blank">memory of Udai</a> on her fantastic blog <a href="http://shaistatayabali.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Lupus In Flight</a>.<br />
<b><a href="http://shaistatayabali.blogspot.com/2009/04/angel.html" target="_blank">Angel</a></b><a href="http://shaistatayabali.blogspot.com/2009/04/angel.html" target="_blank"></a><br />
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<i>I felt an angel <br />
Tread gently on my heart <br />
And perceiving numerous ripples <br />
Withdraw the tender touch</i><br />
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<i>I heard an angel <br />
Whisper gently in my ear <br />
And beholding my disbelief <br />
Feed silence to my fear</i><br />
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<i>The angel saw me cry <br />
And smiled despite my grief <br />
For the angel saw diamonds <br />
Falling from my cheeks</i><br />
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Dedicated to Udai Kamath. 1977 to 2003. Remembered and missed.<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/Gp29JYOeYo0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/05/bangalore-banana-leaves-lost-friends.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-91826187540024560532010-04-13T13:53:00.005+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.678+02:00Adventures in Mumbai: 33 And Counting…Another birthday has rolled around, and it’s pretty clear from people’s reactions that I’m definitely not in the place I’m supposed to be for my age! Opinions range from ‘very cool’ to ‘wasting your life’. Of course it doesn’t help that it’s virtually impossible to explain what I’m doing or why, so people read whatever makes sense to them. <br />
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The one constant of these few months however is that people recognise how lucky I am. But they think I’m lucky to be travelling and seeing new places, when in fact what I’m really lucky for is to be journeying through a life of stunning people. People with drive and dedication and smiles and positivity. New friends that treat me like they’ve known me for ages. I even got a home-made cake and a hand drawn birthday poster today.Will treasure always :)<br />
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<b>Birthday Celebrations at Ashoka</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra2mVR2WI/AAAAAAAACVQ/kpJWAAOFha4/s1600-h/P1030257%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030257" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra4HMHpyI/AAAAAAAACVU/ihRRchuC5-A/P1030257_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="P1030257" width="504" /></a> <br />
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It’s also not just people but their ideas and ability to turn those ideas into reality that continues to inspire me. I’ve been in India for only a month, and I’ve already been involved with about 10 organisations and projects, all working hard to make their local realities a better place for other people. <br />
<ul><li><a href="http://india.ashoka.org/youthventure" target="_blank">Ashoka’s Youth Venture</a> – working on extending and developing their program that inspires and supports young people to turn their ideas into action. The ambition is to create a regional culture that makes and supports change</li>
<li><a href="http://www.aseema.org/" target="_blank">Aseema</a> – looking at Public Private Partnerships to improve the 1200 BMC schools in Bombay, and modelling the mechanisms of scale needed to achieve this</li>
<li><a href="http://www.arpan.org.in/" target="_blank">Arpan</a> – planning how to design full-cycle programs that eradicate severe child abuse in communities</li>
<li>Dreamcatchers – planning future development and organisational restructure to design holistic programmes that work with both emotional needs and economic development in post-disaster zones.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.sankalp.org.in/" target="_blank">Sankalp Rehabilitation Trust</a> – working on how to leverage the web for raising awareness and funds for rehabilitating street drug users and supporting HIV patients</li>
<li><a href="http://www.ashoka.org/nitin_more" target="_blank">LEARN</a> – designing sustainable social enterprises to enable lasting economic improvement for women in Dharavi</li>
<li><a href="http://www.sspindia.org/" target="_blank">SSP</a> – looking at mission congruence, collaborative services and operational efficiencies across it’s MFI, Retail, Health and Training services to improve quality of life for low income women in Maharashtra and Gujarat</li>
</ul><br />
<a name='more'></a><b>Learning about the lives of women in slums at LEARN</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra50X6ljI/AAAAAAAACVY/VqY-H1cv_SQ/s1600-h/P1030156%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030156" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra71l_8yI/AAAAAAAACVc/aZXzTNpAuf8/P1030156_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="P1030156" width="504" /></a><br />
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I’ve also been helping out with some fledgling projects started by young people struggling through their own difficult personal circumstances, but who are no less impressive in their understanding of local dynamics and their drive to create the solutions needed<br />
<ul><li>Disha – started by Khusboo Kantharia, working on the rehabilitation of girls from state institutions into mainstream society. Many of them are extremely vulnerable and at huge risk of human trafficking</li>
<li>Oscar – started by Ashok Rathod, providing life skills and support systems for slum kids through football. The rules of engagement provide compelling reasons for children to stay in school.</li>
<li>Vishwas – started by Ganesh Lokare, ensuring that children return to and stay in school in the face of a host of inhibiting factors. See the mind-map below </li>
</ul><br />
<b>Vishwas’ mind-map</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra94wOvPI/AAAAAAAACVg/gBnKjDPKEjU/s1600-h/P1030218%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Vishwas’ mind-map" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8Ra_f0pYUI/AAAAAAAACVk/JbZZtafxCo0/P1030218_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="Vishwas’ mind-map" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<b>Workshop with Khusboo on the effects of institutionalisation</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbBKpAVXI/AAAAAAAACVo/lIHaIZnrLcQ/s1600-h/P1030078%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Workshop with Khusboo" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbCn7LTII/AAAAAAAACVs/fLEojftZdI0/P1030078_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="Workshop with Khusboo" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<b>Lunch with Ashok and his team after our workshop</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbEpUtwxI/AAAAAAAACVw/0lnad5jQZ_o/s1600-h/P1030177%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Lunch with Ashok and his team after our workshop" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbGHIoMcI/AAAAAAAACV0/LUwniV5F7pY/P1030177_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="Lunch with Ashok and his team after our workshop" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Finally, outside of all these formal organisational contexts, we met a lady called Shanti Ravi, who lives in one of the ‘uncool’ slums behind the Reay Road station in east Mumbai. She has single-handedly brought in a host of services and support systems for children in her locality, in the face of huge odds including being married off at 13 and then suffering severe domestic violence for most of her life. Most of these programs brought in through NGOs have failed both her and her community, and we’re now seeing if it’s possible to build local confluences of people like her to ensure that young people have internal rather than external support systems. <br />
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<b>Shanti Ravi </b><br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbIJE2TgI/AAAAAAAACV4/3P1OJsWmTGE/s1600-h/P1030248%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Shanti Ravi" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbJaw5hfI/AAAAAAAACV8/ZYF79wVzzvA/P1030248_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="Shanti Ravi" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<b>Shanti explaining the dynamics of Mumbai slums</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbLMT0efI/AAAAAAAACWA/ti7nOtNHzgw/s1600-h/P1030095%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1030095" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S8RbMiPAYnI/AAAAAAAACWE/6V7V_wTHH5U/P1030095_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border: 0px none; display: inline;" title="P1030095" width="504" /></a><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/G-2AzsqkeDU" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/04/33-and-counting.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-49493478417269402212010-04-09T07:52:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:26:21.095+02:00If A Million NGOs With A Million Solutions Aren’t Solving The Problem, Does The Answer Really Just Lie In More?<p>Apparently there are over a million NGOs working in India. You’d think that everything could be solved by a million organisations with a million different ideas. There’s definitely not a million different issues. If even half a billion people here need support, that would be one organisation for every 500 people. Should be enough right? </p> <p>But no. For every issue I’ve seen it seems there’s not enough support or services. Most funders are busy encouraging more start-ups and newer ideas on their own self-absorbed mission to build recognition by ‘finding’ the next big thing. They remain oblivious to the obvious fact that more organisations and more solutions have clearly proven themselves not to be the answer.</p> <p>If you ask me, I’d say that the real issue is that the sector is massively fragmented. Organisations and solutions isolated by the need to compete with each other for funding, and by a funding culture that is more interested in organisational success than the eradication of human vulnerabilities. </p> <p>Instead of pumping money into existing infrastructures and supporting to them to innovate using experience, and instead of financing and supporting the coagulation and creation of meta networks of organisations locking together different aspects of solutions to the same few problems, we’re continuing to get excited about one-dimensional product and service innovations that improve quality of life rather than enable long term transformative development and change. </p> <p>Of course it’s easy to be critical, but the real question is, is there a solution? The answer is an easy yes. All it requires is a recognition of realistic timeframes and an agile development approach that can adapt to emergent behaviour. Here’s a concept example that we’re designing for developing the ‘people’ infrastructure needed for scaling social outcomes in India, using Ashoka’s Youth Venture programme that works with young adults as a key building block. </p> <p>The concept starts with </p> <ol> <li>Shifting down and engaging school-age children in the need for and possibilities of making a difference, </li> <li>Then encouraging and developing in young adults the core skills needed to take initiative and turn ideas into action, </li> <li>Then incentivising (financially), training, and facilitating the coalescing of these people and ideas into issue focused meta networks and consortia, </li> <li>And finally driving these networks towards the strategic solving of large scale regional problems. </li> </ol> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S77AoP0puUI/AAAAAAAACVI/b2baz3Se1dg/s1600-h/ScalingChangemaking3.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Scaling Changemaking" border="0" alt="Scaling Changemaking" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S77ApgtmrKI/AAAAAAAACVM/LSJfIO2MjGg/ScalingChangemaking_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="504" height="344" /></a> </p> <p>The aim here is not about pushing millions more people into addressing social problems, but to ensure that those who do choose this path do so together and more effectively, and within a regional culture that is more supportive and understanding of social development.</p> <div class="feedflare">
<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=J4VX6bOPA3U:Ey-r8hmGw_Q:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=J4VX6bOPA3U:Ey-r8hmGw_Q:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?a=J4VX6bOPA3U:Ey-r8hmGw_Q:63t7Ie-LG7Y"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/socialadventures?d=63t7Ie-LG7Y" border="0"></img></a>
</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/J4VX6bOPA3U" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/04/if-million-ngos-with-million-solutions.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-7445408976881415212010-03-30T16:54:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:28:17.904+02:00Things Badly Made Don’t Last<p>Two weeks in and I’ve already settled into a rhythm of sorts. I’ve got a place to stay with my friends Urvaksh and Khursheed, and a base to work out of at the Ashoka office in Bandra. I take the fantastic new sea link every morning which gets me there in a short half hour; an amazing transformation for a journey that used to take us almost an hour longer when I was a child. </p> <p>Bandra still has its leafy lanes and quiet charm in some places, but in others its a completely different animal. Fancy shops and bars and a new demographic of active young people. Much of the new development that has missed South Bombay seems to have focused here. </p> <p>Still, for all the new flashiness and technology, the ‘chalta hai’ attitude to quality still persists. Things are regularly badly made and poorly put together. The old roads were always badly made and so were the electrics, but even the new malls are only half built and already in full use. Wires hang freely, just built car parks look 10 years old, and cheap new steps are already chipped. At my friend’s house, builders who don’t have a clue what they’re doing are busy smashing through walls they shouldn’t be damaging. Unqualified electricians are ripping sockets out of walls, and plumbers take wild guesses at where pipes might before taking the tiling apart. </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7ILHP3UAUI/AAAAAAAACUA/7DJRgFjXD2E/s1600-h/P1020952%5B3%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1020952" border="0" alt="P1020952" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7ILIrtgf8I/AAAAAAAACUE/OdEVL8bFld8/P1020952_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="504" height="379" /></a>&#160;</p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7IQnK4KTWI/AAAAAAAACUI/Djdfy7XE008/s1600-h/P1020978%5B3%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1020978" border="0" alt="P1020978" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7IQopEb3fI/AAAAAAAACUM/SONlOL1H56A/P1020978_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="504" height="379" /></a> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7IQqZ8z6eI/AAAAAAAACUQ/LMz6kgkdwOY/s1600-h/P1020977%5B3%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="P1020977" border="0" alt="P1020977" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S7IQrzvMKYI/AAAAAAAACUU/lFPogxfzxM8/P1020977_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="504" height="379" /></a> </p> <p>Some obvious causes </p> <ol> <li>Things are built on inadequate budgets or done as cheaply as possible, so the materials used are poor quality and the labour employed isn’t skilled enough </li> <li>Things are built by people who will never use it, and therefore don’t personally relate to the pain of failure </li> <li>There is pressure to get value as quickly as possible, so things go into use before they are properly finished </li> </ol> <p>The upshot of all of this is that although basically functional, much of it doesn’t work properly, and costly maintenance and fire-fighting cycles start right from day one. Over time people have just come to accept it as given, because the problem has become too huge and too endemic to manage, and the underlying causes cannot be easily addressed. </p> <p>There is probably a lesson in this for people funding and delivering social programmes. Building programmes on inadequate budgets, or designing them without having spent enough time on the ground and in collaboration with the people impacted, or rushing into new initiatives simply because of perceived need, is likely to result in programmes that don’t deliver quality and never really create lasting or sustainable change. </p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/2_uHOxCiq1g" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/03/things-badly-made-dont-last.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-48182791989688518692010-03-13T14:34:00.003+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.679+02:00Adventures in India: Home Sweet Home!The heat and sunshine in Mumbai are almost overpowered by the noise of construction as I sit on my friend Nikhil’s couch, watching cricket and settling in to the next leg of my globosocial adventures, one eye on the clearly untrained workers haphazardly drilling the building wall just outside.<br />
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My flight was smooth and impressive for an Indian Airlines, with good food and a reasonably big touch screen entertainment system that was miles better than anything I flew to or around Latin America. Cheap too. Go Jet Airways!<br />
Outside the flat at Kemps Corner, little has changed since I was a child. The flyover is as it always was; the summer haze is smoggy as ever; red buses haven’t changed; car horns continue unabated; and taxis are still the same tiny Fiat Padminis we used to squeeze into as children. <br />
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<img alt="P1020947" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S5uGXTg1AhI/AAAAAAAACT0/4bqagMH0x1g/P1020947_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1020947" width="504" /><br />
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Tomorrow I’ll pick up the phone and start calling friends I haven’t seen in ages, and on Monday the social adventures will start as I get in touch with the people and projects who’ve contacted me over the past few months. If you’re reading this and have any suggestions or connections, let me know. <br />
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In the meantime, the IPL juggernaut is swinging into full flow with the Mumbai Indians playing Rajasthan, and Harbajan Singh and some random woman say hello from a massive billboard outside our window!<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S5uGY_ButQI/AAAAAAAACT4/JXWezVon8tg/s1600-h/P1020948%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1020948" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S5uGaPxXVBI/AAAAAAAACT8/awKqP4WoSh8/P1020948_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1020948" width="504" /></a><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/_uFmadRWYY0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/03/indian-adventures-day-1.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-40174515523810264622010-03-01T17:33:00.005+02:002011-11-10T07:26:21.096+02:00Video Presentation: Globosocial Adventures (SBS Oxford, 2010)I recently gave a talk on scaling social enterprises to MBA students at Oxford University's Saïd Business School, which is partnered with the Skoll Centre for Social Enterprise. It seemed to go down well, so some of the students asked me to come back to talk to them about my journey around the world and share some of my learnings on social enterprise so far.<br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/9779641">Globosocial Adventures - Oxford MBA Talk, Feb 2010</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/rizwantayabali">Rizwan Tayabali</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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Here's the contents of the talk in case you want to skip through it...<br />
<ul><li>Introductions (3:33)</li>
<li>Talk Structure + Group Questions (8:40)</li>
<li>About Me (1:50)</li>
<li>Social Triggers (3:10)</li>
<li>My Path to SE Consulting (5:20)</li>
<li>Globosocial Adventures - What &amp; Why (4:46)</li>
<li>How It’s Going So Far (1:04)</li>
<li>SE Consulting Challenges (13:43)</li>
<li>Useful Things I’ve Learnt (17:25)</li>
<li>Why SE’s Fail (7.00)</li>
</ul><div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/2MUbcF9yXOw" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/03/video-presentation-globosocial.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-86760220190153775062010-02-23T20:01:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:26:21.101+02:00The Base of the Pyramid is a Lie<p>The “Base of the Pyramid”. I want you to take a moment and picture it. What did you imagine? Be honest with yourself. A billion vulnerable souls in different environments, many of them inexorably losing their struggle against brutal realities… OR… a triangular pyramid; a textbook line drawing? </p> <p>Of all the jargon in the social sector this is the one I hate the most. It reduces people to statistics, vast complexity into a homogenous group, raw reality into emotionless concept, and human beings into a neat simplification: The fabled ‘fortune’, the market, at the base of the pyramid. </p> <p>The thing is that the base of the pyramid is a nonsense on two counts.</p> <p><strong>1. It is not a pyramid.</strong> </p> <p>Here’s how it really looks: 1bn high income. 2.5bn middle income.1.5bn low income. 1bn extreme poor. (see Jeffrey Sachs, End of Poverty)</p> <p>The last group are people who, for example, cannot even afford the $1 a day needed for the life saving AIDS treatments that Cipla provides.</p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S4QX-sXxfiI/AAAAAAAACFQ/9vwEMZAxSSA/s1600-h/Global%20Wealth%20Distribution%5B3%5D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Global Wealth Distribution" border="0" alt="Global Wealth Distribution" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S4QX_j4YJXI/AAAAAAAACFU/iGNdMR03UFg/Global%20Wealth%20Distribution_thumb%5B1%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="504" height="339" /></a>&#160;</p> <p><strong>2. It is not a market.</strong></p> <p>The so called market that many social enterprises and social investors are chasing is not at the base, but somewhere in the middle. The market that allows social enterprises to be viably self-financing and which is being targeted by social investors, is not the bottom billion, but the middle four. This is where, for example, the microfinance entities make their profits, and where you can sell technological or service innovations that address social need at costs that fit available income. At the bottom, no social ‘enterprise’ is going to work. The bigger challenge is to keep people alive in the face of conflict, and famine, and AIDS. </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S4QYAb1IIOI/AAAAAAAACFY/U3GRfZE4_Vs/s1600-h/Market%20for%20Social%20Enterprise%5B3%5D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Market for Social Enterprise" border="0" alt="Market for Social Enterprise" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S4QYBTkM9jI/AAAAAAAACFc/pMGfIHXl33k/Market%20for%20Social%20Enterprise_thumb%5B1%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="504" height="337" /></a>&#160;</p> <p>Maybe this area of focus for social entrepreneurs should be called the 'Middle of the Michelin Man’ or the ‘Middle of a Weirdly Shaped Top Heavy Ball’ but of course that would be stupid and dehumanising. But not any more than the base of a hypothetical pyramid that isn’t.</p> <div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/jnYnktVK69o" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/02/base-of-pyramid-is-lie.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-49094686242128862122010-02-01T16:44:00.003+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.679+02:00Adventures in South America: Land Of A 1000 DancesArgentina, Chile and Peru followed on from Mexico and Brazil and flew by in a blur of colour and music and beautiful people. I arrived back in the UK, knackered from months of working hard and playing hard, and bleary eyed from a journey from Lima that took almost an entire day. Fortunately arrival was immediately followed by fun times and great food with friends in London!<br />
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<b>Arriving cold and bleary eyed into the London winter</b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S2bou-RWYxI/AAAAAAAACEE/VYgkVPcueYc/s1600-h/P1020881%5B29%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1020881" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S2bov1W2wVI/AAAAAAAACEI/YuWkuizA_Y4/P1020881_thumb%5B27%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1020881" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<b>Immediately brightening up after friends and great food!</b><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S2bowb58Q4I/AAAAAAAACEM/S5uC8-HqjTc/s1600-h/P1020879%5B9%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1020879" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/S2bowzI8eoI/AAAAAAAACEQ/PBhsNf2Cw74/P1020879_thumb%5B7%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1020879" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Out there I was so immersed in the things I was doing that about all I could do was take notes and hope that I’d remember enough to write everything up when I got back. It seemed like such a waste to waste days writing or blogging when I could be living the experience. <br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>As it turns out though, the million photographs I took mean that I have a pretty good diary of my life on the road, and the mind-maps, notes and documents I created mean that I have great reminders of the things I worked on. When you add the fact that I’m still in touch with almost everyone I met, and am continuing to help a number of the organisations I worked with, the act of retrospective recording isn’t proving to be too difficult a task. The challenge lies in the scale of it. I recently did a small analysis of time spent, and over the last year alone it works out to around <b>1000</b> hours of pro-bono work across approximately 60 social enterprises and NGOs ranging from start-ups to global entities.<br />
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So anyway, this should hopefully be the first of more regular blog posts, but for now I just thought I’d share a small glimpse of who I’ve worked with and what I’m planning to write up – I’ve got as far as draft lists :)<br />
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<br />
<b>Organisations I engaged with in 2009</b><br />
London<br />
<ul><li>Ashoka International</li>
<li>UnLtd</li>
<li>Red Foundation </li>
<li>Imediate </li>
<li>i-Genius </li>
<li>BANG Edutainment</li>
<li>Bold Creative</li>
<li>Positive TV</li>
<li>Living Lens</li>
<li>Carbon Outreach </li>
<li>DigiTalk </li>
<li>Cool2Care</li>
</ul>Mexico<br />
<ul><li>Ashoka Mexico</li>
<li>Ojos Que Sienten</li>
<li>Revolucion con Letras</li>
<li>Fundacion de Investigacion y Desarrollo Educativo </li>
<li>Fin Comun</li>
<li>Sustentavia</li>
<li>Fairtasa</li>
<li>Yansa</li>
</ul>Brazil<br />
<ul><li>Ashoka Brazil</li>
<li>Catalytic Communities </li>
<li>CDI</li>
<li>The International Exchange</li>
<li>Factory of The Future</li>
<li>Ayllu Initiative</li>
<li>Artemisia</li>
<li>Barca </li>
<li>Ocarete</li>
<li>Movimento Nosse Sao Paolo</li>
<li>Article 19</li>
<li>Projecto Alavanca</li>
<li>IDEC</li>
<li>Sitawi</li>
</ul>Argentina <br />
<ul><li>Ashoka Argentia </li>
<li>La Usina</li>
<li>Fundacion Leer</li>
<li>TangoVia</li>
<li>Cimientos</li>
<li>Help Argentina</li>
</ul>Chile<br />
<ul><li>Regala Tu Compleano</li>
<li>Escuela de Guias</li>
<li>Rodelillo</li>
<li>Corazón de Chileno</li>
</ul>Peru<br />
<ul><li>Ashoka Peru</li>
<li>Instituto Del Peru</li>
<li>Care Peru</li>
<li>Grupo Geo</li>
<li>Ciudad Saludable</li>
<li>EnseñaPerú</li>
</ul>India<br />
<ul><li>UnLtd India</li>
<li>Grassroutes</li>
<li>Youth Factor</li>
<li>Dream A Dream</li>
<li>Youth Venture India</li>
</ul>United States<br />
<ul><li>Shareable.net</li>
<li>Charity Champs</li>
<li>Broncs Weblog</li>
<li>Literacy and Poverty Project</li>
</ul>Nigeria<br />
<ul><li>Paradigm Initiative Nigeria</li>
</ul>-------------------------------------------<br />
<br />
<b>Things I’m planning to write about in the next month or so</b><br />
<br />
<b>Regional </b>– Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru<br />
<ul><li>Travel Reflections – Places and Cultures</li>
<li>Social Issues Covered + interview transcripts</li>
<li>Social Enterprises worked with incl. ideas and changes</li>
</ul><b>Article Topics </b><br />
<ul><li>Principles of Social Design – Ecosystems, Timeframe, Impact focus</li>
<li>Practical mechanisms of scaling for social enterprises</li>
<li>Differences between mature and immature information economies – developed vs. developing economies</li>
<li>Inclusive Business</li>
<li>Hybrid Value Chains</li>
<li>Social Business</li>
<li>Fair Trade vs. Direct Selling</li>
<li>Micro-Resourcing – Shared Service Centres</li>
<li>Incubator Design</li>
<li>New Social Lending Models – Recycling grants</li>
<li>Failures in Global Support Systems</li>
<li>The problem with focusing on Innovation </li>
<li>The problem with Training Social Entrepreneurs </li>
<li>Crowd-funding for Social Organisations </li>
<li>Microfranchising</li>
<li>Creating Identity</li>
<li>Projects Transforming Communities – True Social Enterprises?</li>
<li>Designing Movements</li>
<li>Creating donation cultures</li>
<li>Mobilising the Facebook Generation </li>
<li>Partnering for Financial Sustainability and Social Impact</li>
<li>Financial Sustainability - Business Model Innovation for the Social Sector</li>
<li>Social discrimination and Economic Status</li>
<li>Collaborative models for addressing poverty</li>
</ul><b>How To’s – Guides for Social Enterprises</b><br />
<ul><li>How to build successful a social organisation – 20 steps</li>
<li>Creating useful mission statements</li>
<li>Understanding the difference between Mission, Vision, Strategy and Tactics</li>
<li>Creating flexible 5 year plans</li>
<li>Board Responsibilities for Charities</li>
<li>Using Brand to Achieve Your Social Mission</li>
<li>Using Social Media to Achieve Your Social Mission</li>
<li>Tips for Successful Fundraising</li>
<li>How to Write Good Fundraising Applications</li>
<li>Critical factors in managing social projects/initiatives</li>
<li>Understanding Social Return on Investment</li>
</ul>Hopefully this gives you an idea of where I’m going with this project. Drop me a note if you’re in London anytime during February and have any thoughts you’d like to discuss or add. All inputs welcome!<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/qPzSEKbI604" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2010/02/land-of-1000-dances.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-53754614150308455002009-12-10T18:55:00.002+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.680+02:00Burning Thoughts at Fahrenheit 451Busy days in Buenos Aires follow busy days in Sao Paolo and my life is a blur of new information that I commit to processing and adding to without really knowing how. In between I worry about what do with all this information. Today I met with Mei Ling who has written a book and is writing another, through Vanessa who pointed out that in books lie the legitimacy and permanence of big thinkers. More immediate than books lie articles; 2000 word ones that Neal will pay me to write for Shareable.net and I haven’t even got there yet. <br />
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Maybe its because sometimes I feel like my mind has a mind of its own and I'm merely an observer taking photographs of my imagination. If that sounds like a poor attempt at wordplay, rest assured that its utterly literal...<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmGtciBMI/AAAAAAAACCc/Xiyb9C7xJi0/s1600-h/Course%20Ecosystem%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Course Ecosystem" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmHSSZyoI/AAAAAAAACCg/QNGkjo4aCKE/Course%20Ecosystem_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Course Ecosystem" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmJA4YqUI/AAAAAAAACCk/_2G-qM3yR0c/s1600-h/Acumen%20Brand%20Recommendations%20v0.2%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Acumen Brand Recommendations v0.2" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmJ4dL6uI/AAAAAAAACCo/-YSHBef8MvI/Acumen%20Brand%20Recommendations%20v0.2_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Acumen Brand Recommendations v0.2" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmLq6cdbI/AAAAAAAACCs/tIfd6sl9wTM/s1600-h/Bang%20Restructure%202009%20Development%20Plan%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="Bang Restructure 2009 Development Plan" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmMUr4doI/AAAAAAAACCw/Exadu_VNFTQ/Bang%20Restructure%202009%20Development%20Plan_thumb%5B8%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Bang Restructure 2009 Development Plan" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmN1xCAmI/AAAAAAAACC0/DzlwVPoELOE/s1600-h/the%20wiki%20organisation%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="the wiki organisation" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmQt4T-3I/AAAAAAAACC4/0Mbg7eS3nEc/the%20wiki%20organisation_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="the wiki organisation" width="244" /></a> <br />
<br />
<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmSNkBqYI/AAAAAAAACC8/3WGL30t0qzg/s1600-h/Brand%20and%20Web%20Goals%20and%20Topic%20Categories%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="Brand and Web Goals and Topic Categories" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEmS0OGXlI/AAAAAAAACDA/bR9Am0Olyic/Brand%20and%20Web%20Goals%20and%20Topic%20Categories_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Brand and Web Goals and Topic Categories" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEnpCYyX1I/AAAAAAAACDI/ZmRf1eU2F1Y/s1600-h/DSCF6013%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSCF6013" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEnp5BuxoI/AAAAAAAACDM/pT11D-LbL8k/DSCF6013_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="DSCF6013" width="244" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEnrlW8FLI/AAAAAAAACDQ/9O_7kEvoxUs/s1600-h/PositiveTV-FocusPoints%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="PositiveTV-FocusPoints" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEnsjJhF_I/AAAAAAAACDU/goesTMvs3Jc/PositiveTV-FocusPoints_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="PositiveTV-FocusPoints" width="244" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEn09TPq3I/AAAAAAAACDY/k40EsPrO4JY/s1600-h/Revenue%20Streams%20For%20Ashoka%20Mexico%20v0.2%5B2%5D.png"><img alt="Revenue Streams For Ashoka Mexico v0.2" border="0" height="183" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEn3kdheYI/AAAAAAAACDc/PnHIMmB_CEw/Revenue%20Streams%20For%20Ashoka%20Mexico%20v0.2_thumb.png?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Revenue Streams For Ashoka Mexico v0.2" width="244" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEn-uU5gNI/AAAAAAAACDg/n2QY7fMUOTI/s1600-h/Corporate%20and%20ASN%20Breakdown%5B3%5D.png"><img alt="Corporate and ASN Breakdown" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEoBVoKSiI/AAAAAAAACDk/c---toRQVfk/Corporate%20and%20ASN%20Breakdown_thumb%5B1%5D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Corporate and ASN Breakdown" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEoDwMckEI/AAAAAAAACDo/E0G6bIWqpxk/s1600-h/IMG_0232%5B9%5D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_0232" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SyEoEmKRs_I/AAAAAAAACDs/QKzjLpTNHbY/IMG_0232_thumb%5B22%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="IMG_0232" width="244" /></a><br />
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I don’t really know where it comes from, or why I’m able to do it. I don’t really see myself as a writer or a big thinker. The world is overloaded with words, and big thinkers rarely create anything the person on the ground can use. But then today I read Fahrenheit 451, which is just stunning. A book about the power of books, and the dangers of simplification and the simplification of simplification, until the point where richness and complexity of thought become anathema. A pain to be avoided and destroyed. And then I started thinking about thinking and wondering what do with the stuff I create. <br />
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Hopefully at some point my mind will make up its mind and I’ll figure out what to write, and how I’m going to do it!<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/Hq7wUQTdQeE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2009/12/burning-thoughts-at-fahrenheit-451.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-24994867133102469172009-12-04T16:00:00.001+02:002011-11-10T07:26:21.103+02:00Microfinance in PicturesWhile in Mexico I had the fantastic opportunity of spending time with Frida Ruiz Fernandez who worked in regulation for microfinance and banking for Peruvian Government for 4yrs, and Juan Ahedo who works with <a href="http://www.fincomun.com.mx/" target="_blank">Fin Comun</a>, a microfinance organisation based in Mexico. From Frida I learnt a bit more about Microfinance, much of which is summarised below, and through Juan I was able to accompany a couple of branch managers on their site visits around the city. <br />
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Fascinatingly for me, I learnt that microfinance is not just about lending to rural populations, but also a support system for tiny shops, restaurants and stalls all over low-income areas in cities too. The most fascinating thing was being transported back to a world of notebooks and hand-written accounts. <br />
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<strong>Microfinance in the City – Typical Clients</strong><br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlT7kTuRcI/AAAAAAAAB9A/_WS8l3LpC3Q/s1600-h/P1000590%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000590" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlT8fJVb_I/AAAAAAAAB9E/7veDiGf-bRU/P1000590_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000590" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlT9l920FI/AAAAAAAAB9I/ymjLqinbVcg/s1600-h/P1000591%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000591" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlT-BQC9OI/AAAAAAAAB9M/Ngkecidg_kU/P1000591_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000591" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlT_hwJqWI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/F3G6vIjy74w/s1600-h/P1000593%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000593" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUANtWvHI/AAAAAAAAB9U/Ymt1dm3KPgw/P1000593_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000593" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUBadCBKI/AAAAAAAAB9Y/UpUQ5em1Crg/s1600-h/P1000596%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000596" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUB2kcr0I/AAAAAAAAB9c/DsvxNSoqIPY/P1000596_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000596" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUC0TsO8I/AAAAAAAAB9g/LtWzALN5lUY/s1600-h/P1000597%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000597" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUDkMuBnI/AAAAAAAAB9k/2kFbLAgwyWM/P1000597_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000597" width="244" /></a> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUEt2fKCI/AAAAAAAAB9o/M12w78j3y5Y/s1600-h/P1000601%5B2%5D.jpg"><img alt="P1000601" border="0" height="184" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwlUFMTRjeI/AAAAAAAAB9s/HUkRgw3Os8A/P1000601_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1000601" width="244" /></a>&nbsp; <br />
<h3>Introducing Microfinance</h3><strong>Traditional Banking</strong><br />
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The mechanisms of traditional banking essentially function around monetising (investing/re-lending for financial return) deposits that people store with the bank; and on providing interest based credit that is offset either by collateral, or risk managed through the use of standardised credit rating systems for medium to high income populations. <br />
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<strong>Why Low Income Populations Can’t Use Traditional Banks</strong><br />
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Low income populations typically have neither the collateral nor ratings needed to access credit, because their wealth base is too small for collateral and standardised credit rating systems are not designed to assess their circumstances. Traditional banks therefore have to invest in completely new mechanisms for managing these demographics, which isn’t worth their effort so they ignore the space altogether. <br />
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Finally, where low income populations do have savings, they generally don’t deposit their money in normal banks because<br />
<ol><li>There is a lack of accessible infrastructure. i.e. no branches in their areas since it is not profitable for traditional banks to provide these. </li>
<li>Low income populations are not used to going into big banks. They feel out of place and intimidated by the experience.</li>
</ol><strong>The Critical Problem</strong><br />
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Since low income populations often have greater immediate needs around borrowing money, the lending space has traditionally been covered by loan sharks, where exorbitant interest rates mean that people can end up paying many multiples of the money they borrowed, under threat of personal violence. This simply exacerbates their poverty.<br />
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The second problem is that without access to mechanisms of depositing, managing and growing money, these populations are typically excluded from opportunities to create the longer term wealth that can help them to escape the poverty cycle.<br />
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<strong>Microfinance</strong><br />
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So microfinance is really just a fancy name for the mechanism of providing safe small (typically high interest) loans to people, groups or enterprises who’s incomes are too small to provide collateral or credit ratings, and are therefore risky and highly cost intensive to manage.<br />
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Microfinance organisations make it cheaper and profitable to provide these services by basing themselves and working in the same areas as these populations, and they have adapted their credit methodologies to lend to low income sectors in 3 ways<br />
<ol><li>Their assessment model is very human intensive in terms of finding entrepreneurs, getting to know them personally, helping them with paperwork etc, typically by having branch managers which personally go out to meet clients rather than have them come into a branch, which means a much higher cost base than traditional banking.</li>
<li>They provide loans without collateral, and manage the risk by replacing collateral with information about the people they are lending to. Hence they are significantly more diligent than traditional banks about each individual being lent to. Branch managers establish close relationships with borrowers and work to understand their networks and personal circumstances. </li>
<li>They charge higher interest rates than traditional banks – anywhere between 25% and 40% annually, which although high is still less than loan sharks. Commercial microfinance entities lend at even higher rates of 40%-140%.</li>
</ol><strong>The Goal</strong><br />
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Enable people to exit poverty through profits from assets or activities enabled by small loans. <br />
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<strong>The Gap and Issues</strong><br />
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Microfinance organisations however are typically not banks, which means that they still do not address the issue of saving and wealth accumulation. One reason for this is that lending entities (like store finance) operate without much scrutiny, but taking deposits makes you a bank, which requires compliance with a whole new range of costly financial regulations that can otherwise be avoided. <br />
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Since these organisations fall outside traditional banking mechanisms, in many countries they often exist without any regulation. This means they often grow too quickly and operate at very high risks of bankruptcy.<br />
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Another issue that is also now being recognised is that the mechanism of micro-finance still struggles to bring people out of poverty. The reason is to do with the focus on funding entrepreneurs rather than stable business models or even helping create enteprise for people who don't have any income streams, and because of the lack of education and understanding of money management in low income populations. <br />
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Finally, microfinance is a profit model, and many of the players are not in it for the social goal. They don’t always operate ethically, and are not necessarily interested in mobilising communities out of poverty. Education and health components added to the financing model, can cynically be seen as mechanisms to reduce the risk of default, but the really good ones invest significantly in the development and mobilisation of the communities they work with.<br />
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The exorbitant interest rates can often be equivalent to loan sharks, and more importantly, as the sector matures and costs of managing clients and risk reduces, these rates don't drop (see lack of regulation and monitoring). This means that after a while commercial microfinance entities typically just mint money and will continue to do so. This is one of the reasons for the huge financing boom for these organisations, but goes entirely against the ethics that the public associates with social enterprise. <br />
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The real trouble in the end is that any development model whose sustainability/profitability is based on offering debt, and which has financers as the primary stakeholder, is likely to result in exploitation unless it is ethically run or strongly regulated. At some point any commercial lending entity will end up having to convince (manipulate) people to take loans regardless of whether they need it, just to keep its business model and profit margins going. As the market booms, more entrants seeing easy money are rushing in under the radar of public goodwill. <br />
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<strong>Solution 1: Regulation</strong><br />
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Peru recently won an award for the creation of regulated environments for successful growth and scaling of microfinance. They minimise the risk of failure of microfinance orgs by enforcing a step by step system of growth by modules. Every step in scaling operations requires governmental approval, using a risk based approach covering 4 areas:<br />
<ol><li>Credit </li>
<li>Market </li>
<li>Liquidity and Operations </li>
<li>Capital adequacy (i.e. having enough capital to support operations). </li>
</ol>This approach prevents microfinance organisations from growing too fast or taking risky decisions, and unregulated Microfinance organisations are not allowed to take deposits.<br />
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Benefits of regulation<br />
<ol><li>Access to ratings and ranking makes these organisations open to investment</li>
<li>They get feedback that helps them grow and get better</li>
<li>Regulation means they are better run, so they have access to better human resources</li>
<li>Access to guarantee funds up to a certain amount of deposit to help offset risk. </li>
<li>Protect against and reduce risk of exploitation of vulnerable low income populations. </li>
</ol><strong>Solution 2: Education &amp; Community Investment</strong><br />
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Microfinance organisations are now beginning to provide financial and health education, in order to offset risk (well educated and healthy populations are better placed to repay loans), but the really good ones also invest in education and community programs to transform civil society in low-income areas. Education must focus on savings and wealth management and not be used to encourage take up of more debt.<br />
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<strong>Solution 3: Microfranchising</strong><br />
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Entrepreneurs are great at finding opportunities to set up ventures, but not necessarily so good at scaling or creating stable and repeatable business models. Since microfinance typically lends to small entrepreneurs in low income populations, the quality of enterprise is typically not suited to scale or growth. Your average tiny corner shop isn’t very likely to become 10 large corner shops. Results are starting to show that while microfinance has benefits, it isn’t necessarily mobilising communities out of poverty in the long term. <br />
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The solution may involve offering finance for proven micro-scale business models that can be scaled by franchising. Local product reseller models for example. The value here lies in the creation of new jobs as it does not involve funding existing enterprises. It would also open up economic possibilities for people who don't already have stable incomes.<br />
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Solution 4: Debt and Wealth Management<br />
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For any microfinance entity seriously interested in driving economic development for low income populations, there absolutely must be a focus on debt management and reduction, followed by support for creating and growing wealth. Cash in hand is not wealth. Assets are. A savings account with interest for example. It not only grows money, but also safeguards it. Another example is ownership of housing. A lot of poor people have historical debt that keeps them locked in poverty. Debt reduction systems are not necessarily profitable, but could be justified in the longer term of creating a base of clients whose wealth can be monetised without fear of exploitation. The key here is replacing short-term profit maximisation with long term profitability and social impact.<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/82B5-G_azAk" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2009/11/microfinance-for-ignorants.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-83368781275512932112009-12-02T07:10:00.005+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.681+02:00Adventures in Sao Paolo Part 4: Searching for Marcelo LimaIt’s another month gone and I’m at the airport in Sao Paolo, waiting for my flight to Buenos Aires. The taxi ride was expensive (80 Reais) but very fast and I’ve now got an extra hour to kill and time to reflect on another whirlwind few weeks of vibrant people, new problems, passionate conversations, beers, and days so full that I haven’t even had time for blogging.<br />
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In truth I’ve been meaning to post more often, but I’m finding that I just don’t think in actively reflective ways, so I don’t have much to say on a daily basis. My notes would be all be repetitive… “I met some great people, had interesting conversations about social development, offered some new perspectives, ate well and had a few beers!” Can’t imagine how any of you would find that interesting after about the 5th time :) Churning out emotive descriptors of daily experiences is therefore not proving to be an option with the time I have. But I find if I carry on absorbing things in my usual go with the flow type way, then things aggregate and crystallise and the writing occasionally just happens. Like today.<br />
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I’m sad to be leaving Brazil. I’ve met as many lovely people as I did in Mexico City, which is pretty amazing. I’ve been looked after and entertained and included, to the point that I’ve never had a single day with time to occupy by myself. In my short time in Rio, I caught up with Iris, Theresa included me in the amazing things she’s doing and Gilberto showed me around. In Sao Paolo, the Ashoka crew took me for beers, Elenice showed me around the city, the Wikimedia guys made me feel part of the movement, and my fellow travellers from the hostel hung out with me in the few moments there was time to spare.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2BkjjqlI/AAAAAAAAB-w/IGbtidcnD68/s1600-h/P10008616.jpg"><img alt="Ashoka Mexico Team" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2DpY2FEI/AAAAAAAAB-0/oB5cqiVzDJE/P1000861_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Ashoka Mexico Team" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2F6hJATI/AAAAAAAAB-4/buQAh4Gdbes/s1600-h/P10008733.jpg"><img alt="Lunch with the Ashoka Team" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2IOkp2cI/AAAAAAAAB-8/VOPMykpA-r4/P1000873_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Lunch with the Ashoka Team" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a name='more'></a><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2KagGZoI/AAAAAAAAB_A/v8ys1V27Xp0/s1600-h/P10102223.jpg"><img alt="P1010222" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2MduIAUI/AAAAAAAAB_E/2T5fWknV9U0/P1010222_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="P1010222" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2OSsMB3I/AAAAAAAAB_I/bTNtMQQuiLo/s1600-h/P10009753.jpg"><img alt="In downtown with Thiago, Max, Lili and Elenice" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2QZlLqnI/AAAAAAAAB_M/gNkd65yD7Is/P1000975_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="In downtown with Thiago, Max, Lili and Elenice" width="504" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2SX6qV5I/AAAAAAAAB_Q/6nc6Vbf60Gg/s1600-h/P10100523.jpg"><img alt="Wikimedia crew - Ale, Tom and Glauco " border="0" height="379" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2UGixHiI/AAAAAAAAB_U/wBimdTkmOjU/P1010052_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Wikimedia crew - Ale, Tom and Glauco" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2V3Nl2DI/AAAAAAAAB_Y/-3cKJsS6Kj8/s1600-h/P10100503.jpg"><img alt="Theresa and me in SP" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2W9NnieI/AAAAAAAAB_c/tF6-JkW6BiY/P1010050_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Theresa and me in SP" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Brazil is great but different to the way it’s held in western social consciousness. I was surprised that people don’t wear bright colours so much any more. It’s all gotten a bit European on that front. The food on the other hand is very American in terms of size. Big portions of solid food – meat rice and chips. Missed the spiciness of Mexico, but welcomed the simplicity and straightforwardness of big plates.<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2Y1b6IwI/AAAAAAAAB_g/NOu6Wu6ZZT0/s1600-h/P10100103.jpg"><img alt="Francisco, me and some serious food!" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2a89YSbI/AAAAAAAAB_k/AB_FxN99o4k/P1010010_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Francisco, me and some serious food!" width="504" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2dNpr6pI/AAAAAAAAB_o/6_fPKDRI8tw/s1600-h/P10100093.jpg"><img alt="Coco and more huge munch!!" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2euGNp2I/AAAAAAAAB_s/AQWLrYcagjQ/P1010009_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Coco and more huge munch!!" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Samba is not what I thought it was either. It’s so much better! Rio was more fragmented and Sao Paolo less hectic than I was led to believe. Favelas too, are not what I imagined. Tom and Ale took me to visit a project in a slum that borders the very fancy University of Sao Paolo, and when I checked to see if I should leave my wallet and camera in the car, I was told that it wouldn’t be a problem. And yes, I still have everything! <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2hK95fOI/AAAAAAAAB_w/sPb74c10nMA/s1600-h/P10101493.jpg"><img alt="Samba party" border="0" height="287" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2iYS5trI/AAAAAAAAB_0/UyzqboRNMCo/P1010149_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Samba party" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Life in the Sao Remo favela is lived out in the small streets that weave through the brick structures, so the vibrance of people and youth really strikes you, but for all it’s close crowdedness, no one could tell us where to find Marcelo Lima. He’s a young kid who’s trying to become an economist and has been there all his life, so it really surprised me that no one even seemed to recognise his name. The doors have no numbers or names on them and tiny shoulder wide pathways weave through the dwellings, making me wonder how people know where to find each other or what they use as markers for reference.<br />
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<a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2lVUXvKI/AAAAAAAAB_4/aIVBgdh6nVs/s1600-h/P10101674.jpg"><img alt="Sao Remo " border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2nV8nWDI/AAAAAAAAB_8/rg5pB5LDyJM/P1010167_thumb2.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Sao Remo" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2pjJfbfI/AAAAAAAACAA/akbPm7UOhn0/s1600-h/P10101713.jpg"><img alt="Looking for Marcello" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2rutxumI/AAAAAAAACAE/QEamBw68Lrk/P1010171_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Looking for Marcello" width="504" /></a> <br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2tyUHLCI/AAAAAAAACAI/BLXcmr3mO2E/s1600-h/P10101865.jpg"><img alt="Still no joy..." border="0" height="504" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2wGMilUI/AAAAAAAACAQ/DQNEcuIvCvg/P1010186_thumb3.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Still no joy..." width="379" /></a> <br />
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<b>On an insider’s tour with Marcelo after finally finding him! </b><br />
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<a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX2ytFYx0I/AAAAAAAACAU/uA8aRHtA6kc/s1600-h/P10101923.jpg"><img alt="On the rubbish heap outside the favela. The government doesn't provide decent services." border="0" height="379" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SxX20thMXOI/AAAAAAAACAY/374cd_W10Iw/P1010192_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="On the rubbish heap outside the favela. The government doesn't provide decent services." width="504" /></a> <br />
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Brazil is also different to the way it’s held in Brazilian social consciousness. Contrary to the powerful belief and constitutional focus that Brazil is a place where anyone can belong, there is serious institutional discrimination against people of colour, particularly women; and there are issues with the social autonomy and recognition of many ethnic groups. In a country where voting is mandatory, corruption is rife, most people have no idea who they voted for, and participative democracy is fledgling. Finally, in a place where there is locally believed to be no culture of giving, there are stunning examples of time and dedication and achievement in the addressing of social issues and in the development and mobilisation of fragmented communities. <br />
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As a place, it’s been just another country for me. Buildings are buildings and roads are roads. Malls look the same and cars are universal. Scenery awes and man-made achievements astonish. Ethnic artefacts blur and roadside shops sell the same things. Foods change and language alters in sound. It took a little longer to connect with people than in Mexico, where I was blown away by the warmth of the people I met, but in reality the difference was marginal. <br />
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I imagine you’re feeling that this means I didn’t care so much, but I did. Here’s the thing… I love that amongst the all the little differences that we use as separators, lie fundamental and powerful similarities with other places and peoples. I love feeling at home in cities I’ve never seen before, and I love feeling that it probably won’t matter where I go this trip, if I take the time to understand perspective and engage, there’ll be vibrant people, new problems, passionate conversations, beers, and days so full that I won’t have time for blogging!!<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/zn6Y5JKs6aU" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2009/12/looking-for-marcello-adventures-in.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8027552391232887122.post-9962259268901108112009-11-20T01:45:00.006+02:002011-11-10T07:34:02.683+02:00Adventures in Sao Paolo Part 3: Gravatars and Charity ChampsIt’s another beautiful balmy night in Sao Paolo, and I’m sitting out on the patio in my hostel, winding down after a long day of discussing concepts and issues and potential futures, followed by more birthday beers.&nbsp; Two nights in a row. Fun, but tiring, because the 7 very conservative university kids in my room all keep waking up at about 6.30 – it makes no sense; they’re on holiday!! <br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwYSuMOguVI/AAAAAAAAB70/3q_q9PHe3Xk/s1600-h/Partying-In-Sao-Paolo%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="Partying-In-Sao-Paolo" border="0" height="379" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_XfTio3nGWjw/SwYSvPlv9-I/AAAAAAAAB74/1j2V3FhZEU0/Partying-In-Sao-Paolo_thumb%5B1%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: inline;" title="Partying-In-Sao-Paolo" width="504" /></a> <br />
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Turns out Brazilians are proud about the openness of their culture in that anyone can be Brazilian, regardless of colour or background; but they lament the fact that there is an envy and revenge side aspect that isn’t so pleasant. Apparently everyone’s out for themselves and want to show each other up. I can’t confirm this because everyone I’ve met has been fantastic, but then I’m mostly meeting people involved in social change, so it’s a bit skewed.<br />
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Been learning all about Hybrid Value Chains and Ashoka’s Full Economic Citizenship, which is about trying to design and prove replicable models of symbiotic partnerships between private and social organisations in the areas of Housing, Health and Agriculture. Fascinating but complicated. <br />
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Also had a interesting conversation with Kevin Wong from <a href="http://charitychamps.org/" target="_blank">Charity Champs</a>, who is developing a platform to support micro-philanthropy using <a href="http://en.gravatar.com/" target="_blank">gravatars</a> as part of a strategy to return social kudos back to people who get involved. If you don’t know what gravatars are go click the link :) As usual the conversation threw up a whole host of ideas in my head and I started to picture awesome opportunities to use virtual worlds like <a href="http://www.metaversejournal.com/2008/10/29/the-worlds-most-successful-virtual-world-nintendo-wii/" target="_blank">Wii World</a>, which is probably going to be massive in the next 5 years. Very fun conversation, and hopefully I’ll be able to help with their long-term strategy in some way.<br />
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<img height="278" src="http://www.metaversejournal.com/images/2008/10/mariokart.jpg" width="500" /><br />
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Finally, had some great advice from Neal from <a href="http://shareable.net/" target="_blank">Shareable.net</a>, around blogging in the moment. He had a great observation that trips like mine are part of a new culture that is emerging where contribution to the common good is <i>the</i> priority, and that appreciating diversity is essential to our ability to change as a people. What I’d add is that in understanding diversity we also understand how similar we all are underneath it all, and how connected we all are in the things that are important to us. And in that lies the recognition that we do not exist alone and that we are fundamentally responsible for each other, far beyond the reach of our own families and immediate societies. <br />
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On which inclusive note, here’s something very cool I came across – <a href="http://www.homelessworldcup.org/" target="_blank">The Homeless World Cup</a>. Check it out and be amazed!<div class="feedflare">
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</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/socialadventures/~4/d8FxzPs1V_g" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Rizwan Tayabalihttps://plus.google.com/111691389541320617769noreply@blogger.com0http://www.globosocial.org/2009/11/of-gravatars-and-charity-champs.html